Project Year

2010

Region(s)

South Asia

Country(ies)

Sri Lanka

Project Description

The major aim of this research is to ascertain the current status of financial inclusion in Sri Lanka, and to identify the constraints and prospects in the financial inclusion process with specific focus on the individuals who receive less than a dollar a day. The key objectives of the project include (a) to assess the initiatives taken by the authorities and financial service providers to foster financial inclusion by using innovations with respect to the financial system, financial institutions, business processes and financial products, and (b) to collate information on the accessibility of the poor to financial services emanating from the financial innovations. The proposed study will be an extension of the ongoing IMTFI sponsored study conducted by the key investigator on new banking technology usage among the poor.

Researcher(s)

Sirimevan S.S. Colombage

About the Researcher(s)

Sirimevan S.S. Colombage received his PhD in Economics at the University of Manchester in 1985. He is currently the Chair of Social Studies at the Open University, Sri Lanka. Prof. Sirimevan S. Colombage served the Central Bank of Sri Lanka and Ministry of Finance as a Senior Executive in research and policy planning departments for thirty-one years, was formerly the Director of the Department of Statistics of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and has worked closely with the Department of the Census and Statistics.

Synopsis of Research Results

Link to Sirimevan S.S. Colombage's "Banking with the Poor in Sri Lanka"