Pioneering digital platform for small, informal biz takes off with Singapore backing

Singapore’s RES Group CEO Trina Savage (far right) gestures during the photoshoot at the launch event of NEDA EMS project on 12 February in Colombo as the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Resettlement of Protracted Displaced Persons and Cooperative Development Rishad Bathiudeen (fifth from right), NEDA Chairman-DG Dakshitha Bogollagma (sixth from left), ILO Colombo Chief Technical Advisor Thomas Kring (third from right), Ministry of industry and Commerce Additional Secretary M. Thajudeen (fourth from right) and two NEDA development officers with Tablet PCs (far right) look on

Backed by a Singaporean firm’s generous grant of a powerful database software, Sri Lanka began work on the first national digital databank of its SMEs and entrepreneurs on 12 February. The initiative, called NEDA-EMS, pioneered by the country’s apex entrepreneurship agency National Enterprise Development Agency (NEDA), shall execute a nationwide centralised database of all SMEs and entrepreneurs thereby boosting the performance of this critical economic sector very significantly. Meanwhile, first ever data collected from this digital platform’s latest pilot tests showed that almost two-thirds of the MSMEs digitally captured, focused in the ‘consumer’ segment, followed by ‘agriculture’ and ‘textiles’.

“This initiative is also in keeping with similar upcoming digital databases in the South Asian region. Therefore today’s effort brings our SME sector in par with South Asia’s SME digitalisation efforts,” said the Minister of Industry and Commerce, Resettlement of Protracted Displaced Persons and Cooperative Development Rishad Bathiudeen on 12 February in Colombo. Minister Bathiudeen was addressing the NEDA’s InfoComm Digital Age project launch event on 12 February, joined by Chairman-Director General of NEDA Dakshitha Bogollagma, Singapore’s RES Group CEO Trina Savage, and Thomas Kring, Chief Technical Advisor-ILO Colombo and Additional Secretary M. Thajudeen. 

The new database, called NEDA-Enterprise Management System (NEDA EMS), shall execute a nationwide centralised digital databank of all small businesses, SMEs and entrepreneurs thereby boosting the performance of this critical economic sector significantly. On a personal request of NEDA Chairman Dakshitha Bogollagma, the software/database component of the EMS project was granted as a free gift to NEDA by its Singaporean maker RES Group. NEDA is equipping its field ‘development’ officers with 250 Tablet PCs to be used as data collection terminals to upload captured entrepreneur data in real-time. At the 12 February launch, Minister Bathiudeen also distributed the Tablet PCs to NEDA field personnel who flocked from all over Sri Lanka. In Stage I of the project, NEDA will collate data from 150,000 entrepreneurs and SMEs active with it and in later stages, the EMS will cover the more than one million MSME eco system in the country.

“NEDA’s overall aim is bringing the Sri Lankan micro small and medium entrepreneurs and their enterprises to a centralised digital platform,” said Minister Bathiudeen, and added: “This Info-comm digital platform will result in the first such digital database for SME and entrepreneurship sectors of Sri Lanka. This initiative is also in keeping with similar upcoming digital databases in the South Asian region. Therefore today’s effort brings our SME sector in par with South Asia’s SME digitalisation efforts. NEDA’s SME Policy aims to create a significant number of technologically driven sustainable SMEs. The policy framework identifies special technology transfer to promote the adoption of modern technology by SMEs and dissemination of information on technology resources as a challenge faced by our SMEs. In that we believe that our SMEs to progress, their technology adoption too should be increased. On the other hand MSME’s technology adoption to be successful, it is important that supporting stakeholders too should adopt and use technology. If the supporting agency is not familiar with technology then transferring them to entrepreneurs becomes a huge challenge. Therefore we start off with giving Tablet PCs to NEDA officials.”

NEDA Chairman-DG Dakshitha Bogollagama said that current data entries at NEDA are manually done. “This is a very slow process and time consuming. Time has come to change it. The paper based recordings at NEDA are difficult to update continuously. Such old information are not presentable to any investor nor a buyer. This new system will be live 24x7. It also helps NEDA administration since our own employees’ KPIs can be measured by this system.”

Making an eye opening presentation, Singapore’s RES Group CEO Trina Savage said that the pilot test stream in Sri Lanka has already digitalised 9,141 small business from five provinces. “We need to move with latest changes or else we would be left behind. This is true for Lankan SMEs too. Their main business focuses as per our system are manufacturing, production and marketing,” she said. Her presentation showed that of the 9,141 SMEs, 66% in consumer segment (products and services), followed by agriculture (20%) and textiles (14%).”

The overall cost of entire NEDA – EMS project is estimated at around $ 280,000. Of this, the software/database component is valued at $ 147,000 and it has granted as a gift to NEDA as a gift by Singapore’s RES Group.