Financial Times

In the rush for gold, we forget for whom
By Random Access Memory (RAM)
Way back in the mid eighties, I recall attending a seminar on Sri Lanka's transport management held at the SLAAS. The main topic for discussion was the widening of roads.

There were presentations by eminent highway engineers illustrating the merits of road widening and transforming them into multi-lane highways. There was discussion on the socio-economic benefits of the highways programme and how that will all contribute to a better quality of life for our people as a whole. All were in agreement that Sri Lanka badly needed a good and efficient network of highways.

On the panel of experts sat the late John Diandas, the accountant and self-learned transport expert par excellence and an extremely sensitive human being, who after some deep thought quipped "have you good gentlemen and ladies thought about the little child or the older person who has to cross these highways?"

Please do not get it wrong. John Diandas was not in anyway anti-progress or development. On the contrary he was a strong advocate of a sound system of rationally linked highways and efficient modes of transport. His positions on the development of the railways, bicycle lanes along highways rationalising its use were indeed ahead of the conventional thinking of the eighties.

Most importantly, he called for systems that could not only serve the needs of the day, but those that can be sustained for long periods of time serving the needs of a wider public and not just a few. He in his wisdom always reminded us of the need to address the basic issues of development and for whom all this was for?

Similarly I recall how with the dawn of the new millennium, the formal business sector was provided leadership with the adoption of a 'Vision 2020' document by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce under the stewardship of the then Chairman, Chandra Jayaratne. The Vision called for a national agenda for the private sector that was at the time on the threshold of taking on the role of the 'Engine of Growth' for the economy.

It basically called on members of the Chamber to look beyond their own interests giving priority to the interests of the nation, the sector in which they operate in and the private sector.

The 'Vision 2020' recognised that the business sector needed to drive a national agenda, if it was to create a conducive and sustainable environment for business devoid of waves of conflicts and crisis.

It called for the business sector to work with a deep sense of responsibility being accountable for its actions, placing values of integrity and transparency high on the agenda. It called for a sustained action agenda to achieve these ideals.

The leadership of the then Chairman won him the LMD's Sri Lankan of the Year Award the next year, but the ideals of 'Vision 2020' were safely placed on dusty shelves by the business sector. Ironically, one is reminded of the merits and wisdom of the proposed visionary directions, when we look at the events that unfold in our midst in crisis proportions and the reactions of the business sector in attempting to adopt knee jerk pressure tactics to 'solve' our deep-rooted problems.

Looking beyond one's nose calls for a lot of courage. The fine examples set by the apparel sector with sound leadership to prepare for events beyond 2005, serve as a good case study of the private sector driving national agenda.

The far-fetched action taken will indeed save thousands of jobs and provide a platform for the sector to look beyond survival to thriving in the quota-less open market domain.

What is important to note is that these sector leaders did not seek handouts from government or await the Ministry of Trade to lead negotiations on their behalf or seek concessions for acquiring the needed technology.

Instead, they led the government organisations, made the right moves and adopted the most appropriate technology. Even at this late hour it may be opportune for the business sector to adopt its own vision for the future without being driven by the lofty 'visions' presented in the political arena.

A vision that will place achieving a dignified and lasting peace for our country as a priority, together with a collective focus and agenda on sustainability and social responsibility. Such a vision, in RAM's mind, will provide a strong impetus to the business sector to drive the mission of being the 'engine of growth'.

Away from tinkering with issues such as who is right and who is wrong on the political front, it is perhaps time for the business sector to adopt a vision driven approach to join with all other like-minded groups to form a true third force of a citizen's movement.

Such an approach can provide the platform to address the issues of creation of wealth for whom and how the efforts can be made to be truly sustainable, benefiting the people and the nation of Sri Lanka.

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