New apex standards agency for exports a priority, says SLSI
Sri Lanka today needs an agency to ensure the country’s exports could be certified to guarantee the ease of doing trade with other countries in keeping up with the standards required by each of them, a top state official said.
Sri Lanka Standards Institution Director General Dr. L. N. Senaweera told the Business Times on Friday that the idea for an Export Inspection Agency (EIA) similar to the Export Inspection Council (EIC) in India was mooted nearly four years back.
In this respect, the SLSI had come up with a draft on the agency and have now done a concept paper, he said.
This particular agency could be part of the Export Development Board’s (EDB) Act and be established as a separate entity within the EDB, he said. Mr. Senaweera also noted that the SLSI Act would have to be strengthened as well with the setting up of this new agency.
The SLSI only has the authority to issue standards and required certification for products, he said. He pointed out that in trying to eliminate the problems faced by exporters, Sri Lanka would have to ensure that this agency once set up will look at the respective Memorandum of Understandings entered into by each country to provide the relevant certification for the export of goods to these countries. Meanwhile, Verite Research, a think tank, has conducted a research together with the Lanka Fruit and Vegetables Producers, Processors and Exporters Association and the National Chamber of Exporters (NCE) on “Addressing compliance related Non-Tariff Barriers through Mutual Recognition Agreements: A Case Study in food trade between India and Sri Lanka.”
This research has identified that Sri Lankan exporters were unable to get their products released at the Indian ports without being subjected to tests for standards that could take from two days to three months, Subhashini Abeysinghe, VR’s Senior Analyst and Head of Economics told a news briefing on Thursday. This is inspite of the fact that these products have been part of the list of those exported based on the India Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (ISLFTA).
In this regard, Sri Lanka needs to enter into a Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) that is currently part of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), she said, adding that this could be done outside of this pact. While India provides 4227 Sri Lankan products duty free access to India, Sri Lanka provides 2802 Indian products duty free access to its economy, the ISLFTA states.