An Echelon Media Company
Tuesday May 30th, 2023

Sri Lanka’s Star Garments achieves carbon neutrality

ECONOMYNEXT- Star Garments group, owned by the US-based Komar is now CarbonNeutral certified for its entire portfolio of 14 factories, officials said.

Star Garments earned the certification by the Sustainable Future Group (SFG), a sustainability verification and certification body based in Sri Lanka on Thursday.

“We as a company engaged in the apparel industry basically operates as B2B business with no dealing with the end consumer,” Star Garments Managing Director A Sukumaran said.

“But these days end consumers tend to be more concerned on how products are manufactured, he said.

“Customers look to purchase goods manufactured in an ethical and sustainable manner.”

The CarbonNeutral certification is given by Natural Capital Partners (NCP) to companies that have reduced their carbon footprint to net zero in accordance with The CarbonNeutral protocol. SFG is the regional partner of NCP.

The protocol is the global standard for carbon-neutral certification, assisting businesses to measure Greenhouse gas emissions and help reduce it with credible solutions.

Sukumaran said businesses must strive to help reduce carbon emissions.

“Businesses are the main reason for carbon emission which is now a growing concern among the masses since global warming is affecting the whole world,” he said.

“As businesses, we have to do everything within our power to help alleviate global warming,” he said.

He went on to say that the company “endeavours to reduce whatever carbon we emit in our operations by investing in carbon credits and other sustainable businesses.2

Having achieved its carbon-neutral status two years ahead of schedule, Star Garments is currently the largest company in Sri Lanka and the only apparel company with all 14 of its facilities assessed and certified.

“Star Garments has expanded about 40 per cent over the last few years and we are continuing to expand within the next two years in factories, backward integration and also overseas process,” Sukumaran said.

Sanith de S. Wijeratne, chief executive of the Carbon Consulting Company, said Star Garments had achieved carbon neutrality in a short period.

“We applaud Komar’s leadership in driving sustainability in Star Garments and we are honoured to be their partner in achieving this goal,” he said.

Sukumaran claimed that the Sri Lankan apparel industry stands in a good place at the moment.

“If you look at the 2019 numbers, we have increased our exports by about 6 per cent to 5.3 billion US dollars and I think it will only grow this year and next year,” he added.

“There are challenges but we cannot sit back and complain or take a step back from where we are,” he added.

“As businesses, we have to be able to work with these challenges in the industry. We have to keep moving forward.”

Meanwhile industry experts predict Sri Lanka’s garment exports to drop till April 2020 due to poor conditions in key markets after growing 5.1 percent to a record 5.3 billion US dollars in sales in 2019.

Sri Lanka expects a boost in exports if preferential trade conditions are extended from markets like India and China and the inception of the fabric processing zone in Eravur. (Colombo/Jan24/2020)

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Leave a Comment

Leave a Comment

Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sri Lanka President cleared to discuss cancelled LRT after soured Japan relations

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s Cabinet of Ministers approved a proposal by President Ranil Wickremesinghe discuss resuming a Japan funded. Light Rail Transit (LRT) project cabinet spokesman said, as the island nation is in the process of mending ties with Tokyo.

However, any such deals are likely to take place after the debt restructuring and Sri Lanka starts to repay its foreign loans to come out of default, analysts say.

Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa unilaterally cancelled the 1.5 billion US dollar LRT and East Container Terminal (ECT) projects in 2021. Japan agreed to fund the LRT project while it was one of the tripartite members of the ECT project along with India and Sri Lanka.

The abrupt cancellation hit the diplomatic ties between the two countries and Sri Lankan government officials have said Japan had given the project to Sri Lanka at a very lower financing cost.

President Wickremesinghe returned from Japan late last week after having met top officials of the Japanese government including its prime minister.

“In recent history, due to the stopping of several agreements and proposals suddenly, President Wickremesinghe went to Japan after creating the background to clear some of the worries we have,” Cabinet Spokesman Bandula Gunawardena told the weekly media briefing.

“Before he went, he got the approval from the cabinet to resume the discussion on the light railway project. He got the approval from the cabinet to get parliament approval for bilateral agreements signed or any other investments project. Any change or cancellation of a project could be done only with the approval of the parliament.”

Japan has backed Sri Lanka under Wickremesinghe’s presidency after the island nation declared sovereign debt default. (Colombo/May 30/2023)

Continue Reading

Sri Lanka to tighten grip on television with broadcast law

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka has formulated a broadcast authority law to regulate electronic media which will be made public soon, Cabinet spokesman Minister Bandula Gunawardana said.

“The draft prepared by a cabinet subcommittee under Justice Minister Wijedasa Rajapaksa has discussed with various parties will be given to all media institutions and broadcast media,” Gunawardana said.

“We do not have to hide or force anyone. A legal framework that can be acceptable to all for all sectors.”

“In a week or two Minister Wijedasa will discuss with state and private stakeholders.”

At the moment Sri Lanka has issued frequencies without conforming to an “international procedures”, he said.

In Sri Lanka television frequencies are issued under a state television act.

Successive administrations in Sri Lanka has since around 1980 mis-used state television duopoly which including for conducting elections according to critics.

Private television as well a raio emerged around the 1990s and has since over shadowed state media.

There have been calls by ruling party politicians from time to time to control private media. There is now calls to control social media.

At a Committee on Public Accounts meeting of the Department of Government Information, ruling coalition legislators called for regulation of television content. (Colombo/May30/2023)

Continue Reading

Sri Lanka’s shares fall in mid day trade on need for clarity on DDO and DDR

ECONOMYNEXT – Sri Lanka’s shares fell in mid day trade on Tuesday on selling pressures and a wait and see approach on delays in confirmations of debt restructuring and debt optimization, an analyst said.

“Investors are adopting a wait and see approach on the need for more clarity on debt restructuring and debt optimization and decisions taken at the Policy Review Meeting,” an analyst said.

The main All Share Price Index was down 0.68 percent or 53.25 points to 8,516.86, while the most liquid index S&P SL20 was down 0.41 percent or 10.02 points to 2,418.90.

The market generated a turnover of 272 million rupees at 1230 hours.

The top losers were Vallibel One, Lanka IOC & Ceylon Tobacco Company. (Colombo/May30/2023)

Continue Reading