Conversations: George I. H. Cooke on Examining Infrastructure Diplomacy in Sri Lanka

Ep. Co#010 Sri Lanka is currently facing an economic crisis. The crisis can be traced back to a number of factors, including the country's high levels of debt, a decline in tourism due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and a lack of foreign investment. These issues have led to a sharp depreciation of the Sri Lankan rupee, high inflation, and a decrease in living standards for many people.   In this episode, PEI’s Anurag sits in conversation with George I. H. Cooke to discuss the 2022 Sri Lankan economic crisis. They start with understanding the contexts of the Sri Lankan economy to illustrate its recent economic and development priorities. The two then converse on the recent crisis discussing what mistakes Sri Lanka made along the way on institutional and strategic levels. They demark what the crisis entails for the State and its people and how it can best pull itself out of the plummet before more harm is done. Finally, they consider what lessons Nepal and other developing nations and development partners can learn from the whole debacle to avoid any more in the future.    George is a Diplomatic Historian whose main research areas include foreign policy, diplomacy, regionalism, and integration. He is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of International Relations, University of Colombo, and Visiting Lecturer at the National Defence College of Sri Lanka, Bandaranaike International Diplomatic Training Institute, Defence Services Command, Staff College, and Sri Lanka Air Force Academy, amongst others.