A Christmas wish

Saturday, 24 December 2011 00:38 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

It is the season for giving, which we all know is a reason to look beyond ourselves and find some worthy cause to take up for Christmas. Everyone is familiar with the warmth connected with giving and the quiet pleasure in ensuring that someone else has a happy time as well. It can be something small and most often is, but the important point is that during this time, more than any other part of the year, people are motivated to give and in fact do.

Christmas comes loaded with good news for Sri Lanka. There is 8.4 per cent growth with all sectors of the economy faring well. Tourism in particular has continued to prosper with over 800,000 arrivals to date and nearly Rs. 1 billion in investment. Foreign Direct Investment has moved out of the dumps and actually doubled to over US$ 1 billion in 2011, with the Government targeting US$ 1.75 for 2012. Even the beleaguered stock market picked up ahead of this all-important holiday.

Continued peace and political stability even with the shortcomings of the Government is something to be pleased about and as many corporates and people sit back, they will likely consider that 2011 has been a good year and predict that the growth will be sustained in 2012 at least, if not increased. Market research groups have predicted that even though the global economy will continue to be bleak, Sri Lanka will probably float above this tide – so not only can citizens be happy about this year, they have some level of security for the year ahead.

So what can we give back? How can we manage this prosperity so that everyone benefits from it? What are the excesses that we can avoid so that greater distribution of resources is achieved? The idea of not focusing purely on profit when it comes to business might sound crazy to most people, but it does not undermine the fact that Sri Lanka needs it.

Be it the 120,000 odd war widows or 10,000 injured soldiers, the two million differently-abled people in our country or the 35,000 flood affected, pick a cause to work for. Perhaps you prefer to fight for literacy or work with the thousands of street children, maybe you are disturbed by the reports of authorities picking up and destroying hundreds of stray dogs in the areas of Matara, Weligama and Mirissa for the sake of “developing tourism”? Then the time is to do something about it.

This is how companies and people can make not just this season but the coming year meaningful as well. Undoubtedly, there are many people out there who are already engaged in doing good, but the challenge is to make it consistent and more widespread. It is at times like this that one can be inspired by personalities like Prof. Yunus of Grameen Bank fame, who promotes the idea of social business to achieve sustainable and inclusive development.

The heart of Prof. Yunus’s policy is simple: start business that are not sorely for the sake of profit but have the capacity to earn back its investment so that the venture is sustainable. From supplying solar power to rural households to fighting malnutrition, unique business ideas have evolved from this philosophy. Many other progressive ideas are arising around the world and in the true Christmas spirit, let us absorb them to give more meaning to our lives.