The Government will introduce a public, private, people-centric entrepreneur concept to develop the industrial sector, Sunil Handunnetti, Minister of Industries and Entrepreneurship Development said after assuming duties at the Ministry of Industries and Entrepreneurship Development.
What existed all this time was a public-private entrepreneur concept. The Government has now focused on a new public, private and people-centric model.
The new concept will come under State ownership and private sector management and the people could participate as investors. Although under the purview of the State, management and technology could be provided by the private sector with capital infusion from the public, Handunnetti said.
The Minister reiterated that the Government plans to convert Sri Lanka into an attractive place for foreign investment by eradicating bribery, reducing approval time for projects and lowering taxes for investors. He also said heavy taxes, delayed approval time and soliciting bribes were the main reasons that prevent foreign investments from coming into the country.
He said the bane of the country was the inordinate delay for a business to get off the ground. It takes about a year and approval from at least 20 entities had to be obtained. He said these delays are purposefully orchestrated to solicit bribes. Handunnetti said under their governance, technology would be used to streamline delays and other strategies put in place to stem bribery and corruption,
The Minister also outlined plans to combine vocational training institutes, institutes under the Education and Higher Education Ministry and technological universities with his Ministry to create modern entrepreneurs. He said they will use the unique digital economy concept and the existing industrial zones, industrial cities and ‘industrial parks’ which is a new concept that will be introduced to achieve the target.
Handunnetti said the Government plans to start new industries and convert nonprofit State institutions into profit-making entities in a short time. He said they understand the problems industrialists face in the country. Mainly from the time of the corona pandemic industrialists found it difficult to repay loans, as a result many industries faced closure followed by employees being made redundant and their assets being sold under the Parate law. The Minister said due to these issues, continuing business has become a huge problem and entrepreneurs have fallen into a deep crisis.
The Government also plans to combine young locals as well as entrepreneurs living overseas to usher in a new era in the country’s industrial sector. He called upon the youth having multiple skills to remain in the country instead of trying to migrate overseas and join the Government to accomplish this task,
