Tuesday Aug 04, 2026
Tuesday Aug 04, 2026
Monday, 3 August 2026 00:22 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
The Government has warned that artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the economics of software exports, arguing that Sri Lanka must move beyond selling engineering hours towards products, intellectual property, and higher-value digital services if it is to achieve its target of generating $ 5 billion in digital exports by 2030.
Addressing the national validation workshop on Sri Lanka’s proposed digital export roadmap last week, Digital Economy Deputy Minister Eng. Eranga Weeraratne said the industry’s traditional business model would need to evolve as AI increases productivity and changes how technology services are delivered.
The caution comes even as the Government is preparing tax, regulatory, and procurement reforms, including changes to venture capital taxation, capital mobility, and public procurement, as it seeks to support a target of generating $ 5 billion in digital exports by 2030 (https://www.ft.lk/front-page/Govt-lines-up-policy-changes-to-support-5-b-digital-exports/44-795438).
“If AI removes a third of the hours, are we still selling hours?” he asked participants, adding that the industry must increasingly generate value through products, intellectual property, managed services, and higher-value knowledge services rather than relying primarily on software development hours.
Eng. Weeraratne also questioned whether Sri Lanka should continue dispersing limited resources across broad international branding campaigns or instead concentrate on building capabilities in a limited number of technology segments where the country can establish a recognised competitive position.
“Branding or marketing without real capability is just noise,” he said, adding that Sri Lanka should identify two or three areas where it could develop specialised talent, attract investment, and build a sustainable international reputation.
The Deputy Minister acknowledged that Sri Lanka had pursued a $ 5 billion digital industry target since 2016 but said previous strategies had failed to deliver because they lacked ownership, accountability, and measurable implementation.
GovTech Sri Lanka Chairman and Chief Adviser to the President on Digital Economy Dr. Hans Wijayasuriya said the industry had demonstrated resilience through successive crises, including the Easter Sunday attacks, the COVID-19 pandemic, the economic crisis, and recent geopolitical disruptions, but warned that resilience alone would not deliver faster growth.
“We must acknowledge that we have been resilient. But that is not what we can be satisfied with as we go forward,” he said, adding that the Government and industry shared responsibility for repeatedly falling short of previous export ambitions.
Dr. Wijayasuriya said the Government’s responsibility was to provide a policy platform for the private sector, while industry must take ownership of investment, innovation, and commercial execution.
He also urged stakeholders to resolve longstanding “chicken and egg” constraints that had delayed the sector’s development rather than leaving responsibility to others.
GovTech Sri Lanka Board Member Chandima Cooray said achieving the target would require more than the organic growth of existing companies, calling for a stronger startup ecosystem, greater support for medium-sized technology firms, and improved access to international markets.
He said Sri Lanka should aim to help around 200 technology companies grow beyond the annual revenue of $ 5 million by 2030 while attracting 25 new Global Capability Centres, alongside measures to improve business development capabilities and strengthen AI-ready skills.
He also said university graduates alone would not meet future demand, underscoring the need to expand vocational and non-university pathways into the technology sector.
World Bank Group International Finance Corporation (IFC) Principal Country Officer Victor Antonypillai said the $ 5 billion target was ambitious but achievable, noting that countries such as Estonia, Rwanda, and Costa Rica had demonstrated how smaller economies could build internationally competitive digital industries by aligning talent, infrastructure, regulation, investment promotion, and public sector digitalisation behind a clear strategy.
He said Sri Lanka’s digital industry could generate export earnings while attracting foreign direct investment, creating skilled employment, and improving productivity across sectors including tourism, finance, agriculture, logistics, and manufacturing, but cautioned that delays in implementation would quickly erode the relevance of today’s strategy as technology continued to evolve.
KPMG Sri Lanka and Maldives Country Managing Partner Suren Rajakarier said the proposed roadmap should not be viewed as a completed strategy but as a draft requiring industry validation before implementation.
He said achieving the export target would require coordinated action across Government, industry, academia, investors, and the broader technology ecosystem, adding that stakeholder validation was essential to ensure the roadmap reflected commercial realities and could be implemented in practice rather than remaining an aspirational document.
