IT: The next phase of development
Some areas have been mapped out in Sri Lanka to make the country a hub in the Indian ocean where the logistics and communication industries are to be developed and to turn the Port City into an offshore Financial Centre, said Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe addressing a seminar on Information Technology for Entrepreneurs held at the Galadari Hotel in Colombo this week. The event was sponsored by the National Chamber of Exporters (NCE) of Sri Lanka along with other co-sponsors.
He said the present government will promote a knowledge based economy for the development of the country during the next decade, aiming at a US$ 22 billion export market while the NCE was focused on developing the Information Technology (IT) sector. The ports of Colombo and Hambantota will be further developed where a viable arrangement will be made with regard to the Mattala airport.
Referring to tourism, he said Sri Lanka has the advantage of being closer to India and China, the two largest tourist markets in the world. “We also have to modernise our manufacturing industry by increasing productivity by being more competitive and increasing remuneration to retain the labour force in the country.”
He further said as Sri Lanka goes along the value chain, semi automation in industries in no way will dislocate workers but add value to its product. He was confident that export earnings will surpass the $5 billion mark to $25 billion despite many challenges.
He paid a compliment to the apparel industry in the country that started from scratch and said it was on par with world class garments. Granting of GSP + will augur well for the apparel industry in future. He also said that granting of i-Pads to school children will be a massive leapfrog into the future with development of training facilities.
The PM further said that a plot of land has been set aside in Weligama bordering Matara to set up two training centres for IT and for logistics. The government has allocated a sum of Rs. 3 billon for this purpose, he said.
The welcome address was by NCE President Ramal Jasinghe while the keynote speech was delivered by Prof. Rohan Samarajiva, Chairman, Information Communication Technology Agency (ICTA).