The COVID-19 Series- Part 2 (COVID-19 Pandemic in Sri Lanka)

After the first confirmed COVID-19 patient found on 27th January 2020, a Chinese woman, the first Sri Lankan national tested positive for COVID-19 on 10th March (a 52 year old tour guide who worked with a group of Italian tourists). The passengers coming from Italy, Iran and South Korea have been required to be quarantined for 14 days. The first COVID-19 patient had died in Sri Lanka on 28th of March. He was a 60 year old patient from Māravila who had a kidney transplant, diabetes and high blood pressure. 

Curfews and lockdowns were imposed within the country. Several villages were isolated (Panvila, China Fort Areas in Beruwala, Athulgama, Akurana in Kandy). Meanwhile, those villages declared reopened. Sri Lankan parliamentary election was postponed. All passenger arrivals from all countries at Bandaranaike International airport have been suspended (Imposed travel restrictions). Sri Lanka reacted rapidly to early warnings of the new virus whereas most of the European countries acted as unconcerned. Sri Lanka adopted the guidelines issued by WHO and reacted quickly. The entire heath care sector and all the other authorities and the people who work during this pandemic situation should be acknowledged.

However, the impact of COVID-19 has affected to various parts of Sri Lankan society. 

- Education

- Tourism

- Social behavior

- Economy

- Apparel industry and many more.

The government ordered to close the schools form 12th of March to 20th April. However, reopening of the schools has been postponed until further notice. The private tuition classes, private schools and all the other education related institutions are also closed until further notice. We cannot expect parents to follow a systematized process to continue children’s education. But, parents have the responsibility to help children with their education during this unexpected crisis situation. 

The Stock Exchange activities halted for at least 30 minutes on 13th of March. On 14th of May, Colombo Stock Exchange closed trading for the day by moving up for second consecutive day with the All Share Price Index appreciating 26 points. On 15th of May, the Colombo stock Exchange closed for trading for the day with the S&P SL 20 Index moving up by 3.3% &ASPI by 1.4%. The turnover for the day was Rs.1.2 Bn. On 18th of May, S&P SL20 Index gains 5.25% during trading. Industries will face economical problems due to this global pandemic situation. Some companies have already announced that they will cut down the salaries of the employees from 5% to 35%. 

COVID-19 outbreak has severely affected to the tourism sector. When it comes to the context of Sri Lanka, our tourism industry was recovering gradually from the impact of the Easter Attack. A downfall of the tourism sector can be seen with the affect of COVID-19 pandemic situation in the country. The travel restrictions which had been imposed around the globe will be affected to the downfall of the tourism industry. It has mentioned that there is a downfall from 30% in the first three months of this year when comparing to the last year. However, this downfall will continue for a long term because this situation is declared as a global pandemic situation.  

The social behavior of the people has been controlled as a measurement against the transmission of the latest coronavirus because it can be transmitted from one person to another. The government imposed ban on public gatherings. All the film theatres, parks, gardens have been closed until further notice. But this situation has given us more time to spend with the family members. 

Official figures showed that the number of coronavirus patients in Sri Lanka soared past 1000. Most of the infected people are navy personnel. As of 20th May, the total number of COVID-19 infected people increased to 1027 after identifying another 4 COVID19 positive patients. This is a global pandemic situation and an unexpected crisis. Therefore, we should have to face it with patience and mutual collaboration.