COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s top export business chamber has called for government coalition partners to agree on a common agenda, saying policy inconsistencies and duplication of effort were a drag on growth as competitor nations pulled ahead.
Fazal Mushin, director of the Exporters’ Association of Sri Lanka, said the business community understands that the government has been hard-pressed to carry on ‘business as usual’ in the midst of the many challenges it has had to face.
These include the global economic slowdown, depleted foreign reserves, debt servicing and repayments, environmental disasters, and the unexpected consequences of Brexit.
But he warned: “Our neighbouring countries are outsmarting us and have faster growth rates while we are running around like headless chickens.”
Bangladesh, Vietnam, Myanmar and India all have growth rates of 6.2%-7.8%, Mushin told the association’s annual general meeting.
“The need to change and adapt to face these new challenges can no longer be dealt with on a ‘wait-and-see’ policy,” he said.
“We can never again be responsive to circumstances yet we ought to now be proactive and be set up to perceive the difficulties with thinking ahead. Change in the attitude of all gatherings included is a basic and must be tended to now.
“Red tape and overlapping functions of several ministries, several strategic initiatives being undertaken by several agencies on the same topic of trade and strategic policy has created an environment of confusion and inconsistency,” Mushin said.
“What we need is a political policy agreed by all coalition partners of government, accountability of ministries and more importantly make the Prime Minister’s policy statement to be the driving vision of this country.
“We have to aggregately deal with private-open organizations and take part in every aspect of exchange, for example, facilitated commerce assentions, two-sided exchange and monetary discretion and evacuate all formality and obstacles to make Sri Lanka’s positioning in the Ease of Doing Business file to be inside the main 5 in Asia and main 20 universally.”
Mushin said Sri Lanka needs to study the examples of Vietnam and Dubai see how they drew top brands to set up there, noting that Sri Lanka cannot continue to rely on its existing basket of export products.
“I appeal to all stakeholders involved in exports; we have been silent far too long and been politically correct. It is time we all spoke with one voice and be the drivers of our industry.”
