Financial Times

Tragedy -- yet ways to rebuild the nation
The Sri Lanka Institute of Marketing (SLIM) said last week that while expressing its sorrow and grief to families affected by the killer tidal wave, this is an opportunity to rebuild the nation with a well-focused plan.

"In a marketing and management perspective I believe in every disaster there is an opportunity. In that context this may be a golden opportunity to rebuild the nation by developing a visionary and a well focused strategic plan for the country specifically for the effected areas to be developed as ultra modern cities. This is how cities such as Hiroshima and Nagasaki built themselves into modern industrial cities rivaling any city in the world," noted Nalin Attygalle, SLIM President said in statement.

He said the government should immediately look at developing a solid disaster management strategy for the country with the help of local and international experts in the subject. "People are the most valuable asset in any country. Therefore protecting this asset should be the primary duty of the state. As a developing country we may not be having ultra modern mechanisms to detect these calamities. However we should not forget the fact that intellectual capacity of the Sri Lankans are relatively high among nations. It is time that the state taps into these resources and make use of them to develop links with other countries."

He said to propel this mechanism of private enterprises moving in fast to further assist victims and social and economic rehabilitation, "we (SLIM) propose that the government should consider tax exemptions for donations diverted towards this objective through government authorized entities. We also propose that the government should look at the companies affected by the disaster as they are considered the engines of growth of economy of a country."

SLIM appealed to all private sector companies to move into the affected areas with their products and services to help the market to come back to normalcy. "We also understand that the companies and entrepreneurs have incurred losses. However, without a market to sell your goods you too will find it difficult to get back on your feet. In this grave situation the state must accelerate clearance activities in an organized manner without further burdening the affected people," the statement added.

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