Second phase of ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ kicks off

Friday, 9 April 2021 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Minister of Industry Wimal Weerawansa

State Minister of Rattan, Brass, Pottery, Furniture and Rural Industrial Promotion Prasanna Ranaweera

NEDA Chairman and Director General Anushka Gunasinghe

Industries occupy a special place in the national manufacturing process in Sri Lanka which is about 26.4% of the national GDP, and only a very low percentage of about 10% contributes to exports. In such a backdrop, President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has identified in his vision of prosperity the need to empower local producers while maintaining sustainable economic development in Sri Lanka. In line with this, the brand ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ was launched recently, based on a concept by Minister of Industry Wimal Weerawansa.

As a part of this initiative, the National Enterprise Development Authority under the supervision of the Ministry of Industries plans to award the digitally-designed ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ logo to selected local entrepreneurs. This effort will enable local manufacturers to elevate Sri Lankan product brands to an international level by winning local and foreign customers and markets. This is further described under three categories, illustrating the originality of the products made locally. If any product uses 100% of labour, technology, raw materials, and human resources locally, such products will be considered a 100% local product and will be awarded the ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ logo. In addition to that, the focus is also on awarding the logo to 60% of locally certified products. Under the guidance of Weerawansa, the ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ brand will be promoted to the public by awarding the logo free of charge to the first 50 local entrepreneurs.

Earlier, the first phase of the event was successfully held at the Galle Face Hotel last year, where 10 entrepreneurs were presented with the logo. The second phase was held on 30 March at the Hilton Residences, Colombo 03.

Accordingly, the main objective of this initiative was to expand Sri Lankan products under the ‘Made in Sri Lanka’ brand worldwide, to transcend the international market and open up a clear and efficient market space. Hence, the public have been invited to be a partner in this national initiative to ensure the sustainability and stability of small and medium enterprises.