Sri Lanka is facing the double whammy of rising prices and high debt, and its people are bearing the brunt of it as the domestic situation turns increasingly grim.
Sri Lanka, which imports most essential items, including sugar and milk powder, has particularly felt the pinch. The depreciation of the Sri Lankan rupee due to inflation has further depleted the country’s foreign exchange reserves, which were already shrinking due to a drop in tourists and exports, the two key sources of US dollars.
But critics say those steps have backfired, leading to food scarcity and essential goods being sold on the black market at marked-up prices.
The price of essential foodstuffs – from dal to eggs – have doubled last year alone. Now the rates have further gone up.
The cost of living is such that poor people even think of having a balanced meal.
A housewife says her family can no longer afford to purchase meat or vegetables when they do eat and that the extortionate price of kerosene has sent her husband into the nearby forests to collect firewood.
“The scarcity of a lot of essential items is probably because of the price controls as some sellers don’t want to sell at the price-controlled amount because they are unable to make a profit.
