The economic crisis was exacerbated by the loss of livelihoods, particularly by urban and rural daily wage earners, who consequently faced food insecurity due to the sudden loss in income and high price increases of essential food and household items.

An economic crisis begining with a ban on synthetic fertiliser and amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, has been developing in Sri Lanka. The consequent hardships have sparked civil unrest and food insecurity. The pandemic, with all its containment measures, resulted in the rapid decline in foreign currency income primarily through Sri Lanka’s adversely impacted tourism sector, worker and diaspora remittances, foreign direct investment (FDI) flows and world trade.

To save its foreign currency reserves, the Government of Sri Lanka limited the import of essential items. Protests erupted due to the resulting shortages and sharp increase in food prices including milk, dhal/lentils, locally produced vegetables, rice, bread, wheat flour, cooking gas, fertiliser and fuel. Medications and medical consumables were also in short supply.

In the first quarter of 2022, the Sri Lankan of Sri Lanka was unable to import the required quantity of petroleum products such as diesel, petrol, coal, and other hydrocarbons used in thermal power plants. This resulted in long power cuts (even 13 hours a day), long queues at fuel and cooking gas stations for days and disrupted schedules for public transport services. The cumulative fuel price increase was 170 per cent from the March-May 2022 period. In addition, the shortage of essential food and non-food household items continued to deteriorate. The government’s last recorded annual inflation rate was 21.5 per cent. However, John’s Hopkins University estimates that Sri Lanka’s actual annual inflation is as high as 132 per cent as of March 2022.

Protests on the streets

Since the government decided to limit the import of non-organic fertiliser in January 2022, home-grown agricultural product inflation increased to 24.7 per cent in February 2022, due to production shortages. By April 2022, food inflation in the country increased to 45.1 per cent from 29.5 per cent in March 2022.

The shortages in food, fuel, and medicine turned months of peaceful protests into violence which killed 10 people and injured more than 250 by May 2022. Forty-five buses were burnt and nearly 150 properties mainly belonging to ruling party parliamentarians were destroyed. Sri Lanka’s president declared a state of emergency on 6 May 2022, the second time in a span of five weeks.

Protests have continued to take place sporadically, also after a new prime minister was appointed on 12 May 2022 to lead the government.

Humanitarian impacts

Severe food shortages are expected in the coming months as food production dropped approximately 50 per cent during the last season (Maha cultivation season September 2021- March 2022) and more than 50 per cent of commercial farmers have stopped cultivation in the current season (Yala season, May-August 2022) due to non-availability of fertiliser and fuel to operate their equipment. This sharp decline in agricultural production has resulted in rapid price increases for staple food items like rice and vegetables, which directly impact the household economy and food security of the most vulnerable.

According to a World Food Programme (WFP) rapid assessment, an estimated 38 per cent of people are already facing moderate to severe food insecurity. The most affected are the estate sector households in both rural and urban areas. Based on a household analysis, female-headed and irregular income households are most likely to be classified as food insecure.

Household access to food has been limited and there has been a significant and rapid deterioration in the Food Consumption Score. While 91 per cent of people had an acceptable Food Consumption Score in 2021, over 40 per cent of those now surveyed by WFP had an unacceptable score.

Due to unaffordability, households are consuming less food products such as meat, eggs, vegetables, and fruits. Households are also buying less but buying more often on credit, and they limit portion sizes especially for adults, in order to save food for children. Only 14 per cent of households are not applying a food related coping strategy or use a low stress coping strategy.

No fuel brought life to a halt

Over a third of households in urban and rural areas are applying emergency coping strategies, such as withdrawing children from school, migrating to other areas in search of employment and selling houses or land. Families in the estate sector are widely adopting coping strategies and more severe measures to deal with food shortages. Rural households with access to land for home gardening or that cultivate commercially are likely better able to maintain adequate levels of food consumption and dietary diversity than urban and estate sector households.

The lack of fuel has affected the income of staff employed in the transportation sector as well as the capacity of fishing communities, for example, to operate their fishing boats which they depend on for sustenance. The suspension of routine surgeries was reported in four major hospitals due to a shortage of medical supplies, medicines, and 10-13 hours-long power cuts. Daily labourers have lost their incomes due to shortages in construction materials and other resources in addition to having to spend their days in queues for essential commodities.

Something fishy

The spiralling economic crisis has led to multiple challenges and increased burdens, in turn, having a detrimental effect on people’s mental well-being.  The shortage of consumables in the country and sharp decline in agricultural production has resulted in rapid price increases in staple food items like rice and vegetables. With this came civil unrest and violence resulted in injuries, hospitalisations, property damage and arrests.

The impact of the economic crisis was exacerbated by the loss of livelihoods, particularly by urban and rural daily wage earners, who consequently faced food insecurity due to the sudden loss in income and high price increases of essential food and household items.

The island nation has a deep-rooted tradition of fishing and consuming fish is part and parcel of the Sri Lankan food culture, indeed, the Sri Lankan way of life. But fish became very expensive and out of reach of the ordinary Sri Lankan families as fishers did not have fuel to operate their fishing boats and the catch arriving at the wholesale markets was a small fraction of the leanest season. This meant that one important source of dietary protein became difficult to come by.

Key humanitarian impacts

Farmers hit hard by the shortage of fertilisers and a sharp hike in the prices of agricultural inputs. This brought down the agricultural harvest. The paddy crop was particularly devastated. The production of tea that brings the country much needed foreign exchange too was impacted.

As a result of the loss of livelihoods, the lack of fuel and the unavailability of fertilisers, a severe food insecurity crisis has been looming across the country. Even essential food supplements for children and nursing mothers, such as milk powder, fresh milk and Thriposha (an additional, nutrition-rice food made of Maize and soya beans, almost like sattu in east-India) were not available. Ironically, Triposha was being supplied free of cost for years.

Education was affected due to power cuts, inadequate public transport, and the lack of stationery items. Examinations were called off and the education authorities put a stop to printing new school text books for lack of paper.

People spent days in the hot sun and rain waiting in long queues for fuel without drinking water, food and sanitation. This resulted in protests, firings by uniformed State personnel, deaths and hospitalisations.

Now, the UN and other aid agencies have appealed for international help to the tune of USD 47.2 millions