hero background

Exploring Insights

The Insights section features short analyses and commentaries that explore key economic and fiscal trends revealed through the platform’s datasets. Each piece connects the numbers to real-world context—highlighting emerging patterns, challenges, and opportunities shaping Sri Lanka’s economy.

Assessing The Transparency Of Key Government Departments 
Fiscal Sector

Assessing The Transparency Of Key Government Departments 

Advocata’s&nbsp;Transparency Dashboard assesses the level of transparency practiced by selected government departments. The top 20 government departments with the highest budgetary allocations as of 2024 were selected for this process. These departments were scored based on (a) their compliance with auditing standards, (b) their compliance with the Right to Information Act and (c) the ease<a href="https://data.advocata.org/insight/assessing-the-transparency-of-key-government-departments/">Continue reading <span class="sr-only">&#8220;Assessing The Transparency Of Key Government Departments &#8220;</span></a>

Sri Lanka’s FDI Surge and Structural Barriers to Sustain Growth 
External Sector

Sri Lanka’s FDI Surge and Structural Barriers to Sustain Growth 

Sri Lanka’s FDI performance in 2025 reflects renewed investor confidence and steady progress. Government reforms and improved business sentiment are beginning to deliver results, settling the country on a path toward stronger regional competitiveness. However, despite this progress, the country still&nbsp;lags behind, having attracted only around US$ 22 billion in total FDI since 1978, while<a href="https://data.advocata.org/insight/sri-lankas-fdi-surge-and-structural-barriers-to-sustain-growth/">Continue reading <span class="sr-only">&#8220;Sri Lanka’s FDI Surge and Structural Barriers to Sustain Growth &#8220;</span></a>

Revenue is Rising, But Interest Payments Are Eating the Budget 
Fiscal Sector

Revenue is Rising, But Interest Payments Are Eating the Budget 

Government revenue has been all on a rollercoaster in the last years, going from 11.2% of GDP in 2018, to 7.8% after tax cuts. However, revenue was recovered to a certain extent, achieving 9.9% of GDP by 20231.&nbsp;This rebound, that rose from revenues from LKR 1,367,960&nbsp;million&nbsp;in 2020 to LKR&nbsp;3,048,822&nbsp;million&nbsp;in 2023 was due to new tax<a href="https://data.advocata.org/insight/revenue-is-rising-but-interest-payments-are-eating-the-budget/">Continue reading <span class="sr-only">&#8220;Revenue is Rising, But Interest Payments Are Eating the Budget &#8220;</span></a>

Sri Lanka’s SOE Losses: Why Structural Reform is Essential
Fiscal Sector

Sri Lanka’s SOE Losses: Why Structural Reform is Essential

Sri Lanka’s state-owned enterprises (SOEs) continue to impose mounting fiscal risks despite recent reports of aggregate profitability. The Ministry of Finance’s&nbsp;Budget, Economic and Fiscal Position Report 2026&nbsp;reveals that government revenue from SOEs has nearly halved in 2025, even as headline profits appear positive1. This widening gap between reported earnings and actual cash transfers underscores the<a href="https://data.advocata.org/insight/soe-losses-sri-lanka-importance-of-restructuring/">Continue reading <span class="sr-only">&#8220;Sri Lanka&#8217;s SOE Losses: Why Structural Reform is Essential&#8221;</span></a>

Government tax revenue has depended on indirect taxes for the past several decades
Fiscal Sector

Government tax revenue has depended on indirect taxes for the past several decades

Revenues from direct sources of taxation accounted for less than 25% of the Sri Lankan government’s tax revenues until its sovereign default in 2022. The Sri Lankan government has relied excessively on indirect sources of taxation, mainly taxes on foreign trade and taxes on goods and services. After tax reforms were made post-default, direct taxes<a href="https://data.advocata.org/insight/government-tax-revenue-sri-lanka/">Continue reading <span class="sr-only">&#8220;Government tax revenue has depended on indirect taxes for the past several decades&#8221;</span></a>

Sri Lanka has not made the transition to high-tech exports
External Sector

Sri Lanka has not made the transition to high-tech exports

High-tech exports are less than 2% of Sri Lanka’s manufactured exports, and do not show signs of improvement. High-tech exports in countries like Viet Nam, Singapore and Malaysia account for 40-60% of their manufactured exports, in stark contrast to Sri Lanka. High-tech exports are products with high R&amp;D intensity, such as in aerospace, computers, pharmaceuticals,<a href="https://data.advocata.org/insight/sri-lanka-has-not-made-the-transition-to-high-tech-exports/">Continue reading <span class="sr-only">&#8220;Sri Lanka has not made the transition to high-tech exports&#8221;</span></a>

Previous