LankaPuvath is the official news agency in Sri Lanka. Based in Colombo, the agency cooperates with national dailies and broadcast media.
Media assets
News agency: LankaPuvath
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
LankaPuvath operates as a limited liability company co-owned by the four state-owned media companies in Sri Lanka, namely SLBC, SLRC, ANCL and ITN. The agency’s board of directors consists of the chairpersons of these four companies (who are all appointed by the government in their own corporations).
Source of funding and budget
LankaPuvath funds itself mostly through a subsidy received from the government, according to local experts and journalists. The agency doesn’t publish information about its financial performance.
Editorial independence
Although it covers a broad selection of topics, as a company controlled by the government, LankaPuvath has an editorial policy that doesn’t allow any criticism of the government, according to local experts and journalists.
No domestic statute and no independent assessment or oversight mechanism to validate the LankaPuvath’s editorial independence have been identified.
September 2023