Ministry of Investment Promotion and Job Creation: A nation rich in industries

This series is based on business leader Dhammika Perera’s recently revealed Economic Growth Strategy and Action Plan to increase GDP Per Capita from $ 4,000 to $ 12,000’. The document outlines goals and action plans for 23 ministries and today’s column focuses on the Ministry of Investment Promotion and Job Creation

Goals

Generate 200,000 new jobs per annum by 2025.

Ensure $ 7 billion local investments per annum by 2025.

Ensure $ 7 billion foreign direct Investments per annum by 2025.

Improve Sri Lanka’s rank in Ease of Doing Business Index from 100 to 50 by 2022.

Improve Sri Lanka’s rank in Global Competitiveness Index from 85 to 45 by 2022. 

Action plan

1. Streamline the investment approval process by reducing the number of pages in the Investment Application from 14 to 3 and provide a preliminary approval within 24 hours.

Simplify the rules and regulations of the investment approval process to overcome red tape.

2. Showcase the competitive advantage of investing in Sri Lanka with 25 year guaranteed tax benefits in agreement with the BOI.

0% corporate tax, 0% VAT and 0% dividend tax for 25 years for the following sectors:

a. Education

b. Information service activities

(Any type of BPO, KPO, provision of infrastructure for hosting, data processing services and related activities, web portals, news syndicates and news agency activities furnishing news, pictures and features to the media, computer-based telephone information services, information search services on a contract or fee basis and news clipping services, press clipping services and other digital services).

c. Human health activities.

d. Air transport. 

The impact of local and foreign direct investments have in a mixed economy is vast in helping link global value chains in key sectors.

e. Manufacture of motor vehicles, trailers and semi-trailers.

f. Waste collection, treatment and disposal activities; materials recovery.

g. Water collection, treatment and supply.

h. Sewerage. 

i. Manufacture of other transport equipment.

j. Fishing and aquaculture.

k. Remediation activities and other waste management services.

12% employee PAYE tax for income levels over Rs. 500,000.

3. Facilitate an IT park and an industrial park in all 25 districts for local and foreign investors to fast-track their investments.

4. Introduce a Nation Branding Strategy for Sri Lanka.

5. Create and showcase a business-friendly environment, through fully-fledged product and investment offerings.

6. Monitor district-wise job generation monthly. Necessary actions to be taken by the Cabinet where jobs are lacking.

7. Reduce the current rate of corporate tax to 12% for new ventures not mentioned in point 2 and provide a guarantee for the reduced rate for the next 25 years for all sectors (in the Western Province) and for the other eight other provinces to be granted a discount of 80%, thereby charging an effective rate of 2.4% (which will help in additional rural district-wise job generation).

8. Foster a flexible and globally employable workforce:

a. Identify the top 50 globally demanded jobs for the year.

b. Improve productivity and skill development at vocational training institutes, benchmarking the best practices at vocational training institutes in Singapore, Thailand, Australia and Malaysia.

c. Establish career-developing institutes and training centres to match the global workforce demand.