Concord signs up with BOI for footwear manufacturing plant

The Board of Investment (BOI) recently entered into an agreement with Concord Footwear Ltd., a new company under the Concord Group, aimed at setting up a footwear manufacturing plant in the Ulapane Industrial Zone. 

The agreement was signed by Board Members Dr. Harsha Cabral and Sanjay Kulatunga on behalf of the BOI and Concord Apparel Managing Director Prasanna Jayasinghe.

This footwear unit will, through state-of-the-art technology, manufacture safety shoes for international markets. The company plans to employ around 350 employees from within the locality, with a view of sourcing and upskilling rural talent and providing meaningful employment through necessary vocational training. 

Foreign expertise will initially be relied on for the manufacture of its shoe uppers until local capability is developed in the short term. The company thereafter aims to expand coverage to include operations for a complete footwear product range.

BOI Chairman Sanjaya Mohottala said: “As we congratulate Concord Group for their foray into footwear, we thank them for taking the initiative to capture significant potential in rural Sri Lanka and contribute to driving the Sri Lankan economy. With Sri Lanka’s availability of required raw materials in the island and trainable and talented workforce across the country, we are confident that this will provide gainful opportunities for Concord and the social and environmental landscape it operates in.”