Open letter to President on rapid transformation of SL

President Ranil Wickremesinghe

Dear Mr. President,

The Presidential Media Division and the Daily News released press releases and media news items titled “Country set for rapid transformation into an export economy” quoting remarks made by you at the inauguration ceremony of a historic temple in Kegalle.

As a caring citizen I said, “three cheers”, happily thinking that at last, the country was on the correct governance path focusing on the creation of new strategic leadership options and policy changes to encourage present and new investors to produce tradable goods and engage in external services. I was delighted that the statement began with a reference that Sri Lanka can no longer continue to rely on borrowings (presumably external?) to address the imbalance between imports and exports, which if pursued will inevitably lead to another economic crisis within a decade.

As I read the rest of the statement, I was crying out in shame, noting that your plan for achieving such a transformation by holding discussions with the World Bank, ADB and the IMF to initiate a program and by passing two new laws in April? The only other reference even as a vague statement was in relation to implementing an agricultural modernisation program, where you anticipated results only after 6-7 years. Are you planning in addition to leverage the National Trade Facilitation Committee (NTFC) and its Secretariat as a part of your implementation strategy?

I am sure that many highly competent Sri Lankan trade economists (including those who have guided you in the past), will be able to advise you on more important winning strategic policy/implementation and change management options. They would surely stress the relative importance of developing strategic networking options with supply chains in the region, assisting capable SMEs to upgrade quality/productivity, and enhancing public infrastructure productivity; along with the need to remove para tariffs, enhance ease of doing business, and one stop facilitation centre benchmarking services in South Indian states. These can bring big gains, well before dreaming as your short-term goal, leveraging Free Trade Agreements with India, China, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam and attempting a high jump by joining RCEP.

Chandra Jayaratne

[i] :https://pmd.gov.lk/news/country-set-for-rapid-transformation-into-export-economy/

[ii] https://www.presidentsoffice.gov.lk/index.php/2023/06/09/high-level-review-of-national-trade-facilitation-committee/