Sri Lanka's Apex Organisation for Export Promotion
“This Act is truly visionary; I wish other countries had this in their export development framework!”, remarked a senior official of the Geneva-based International Trade Centre to me some months back. He was referring to the ‘Sri Lanka Export Development Act No. 40 of 1979’, which marks 40 years this month. He had found it to be an institutional arrangement that was far ahead of its time, and is still having relevance today – not just for Sri Lanka, but also for other developing countries. And he would know, having worked on export development strategies for over a dozen countries around the world.
To help Sri Lankan companies eyeing the daunting Indian market, the International Trade and Development Strategies Ministry yesterday launched a new report to assist breaking into India, with Minister Malik Samarawickrama undertaking a visit to India this week to help local businesses find success across the Palk Strait.
The Sri Lanka Export Development Board [EDB] which turned 40 years on 1st August is the premier state organization for the development and promotion of exports. The Board plays myriad roles in the export sector of the economy, as a Policy Advisor, Monitor, Promoter, Facilitator and Knowledge Provider in carrying out its responsibilities of implementing strategies for achieving national export targets.
Despite global and local challenges, Sri Lanka’s merchandised and service exports have risen by 11.4% to $ 8.5 billion in the first half of this year, prompting the Government to attribute it to a series of development efforts and assure further support. Releasing the latest yet provisional data, Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama said yesterday that export sector performance was commendable, though he admitted there is significant scope for higher value. “The 11.4% growth, despite the impact of the October 2018 undemocratic constitutional coup, and the Easter Sunday tragedy, as well as global challenges, is very satisfactory. For the first time, three months of first half of 2019 - January, March and June - have produced over $ 1 billion worth of merchandised exports. We had originally set an ambitious $ 20 billion target for 2019, but we may miss it and end up at around $ 18.5 billion, which will be still higher than the $ 16 billion achieved last year,” Samarawickrama said.
A delegation led by Hon. Nalin Bandara, Deputy Minister of Development Strategies & International Trade comprising officials from both the public and private sector visited United Arab Emirates (UAE) and met several important trade partners in the UAE. The delegation had very fruitful discussions with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry as well as Al-Maya Group and the Lulu Supermarket International.
The Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) has been conducting the Exporters’ Forum since its inception from late 70s. The EDB has identified the need of a common platform to discuss and resolve the issues faced by the exporter community in Sri Lanka in order to facilitate exporters to overcome constraints arising from policy and operational issues created by various institutes that regulate, operate, and facilitate cross border trade. The EDB as the nation’s prime institute to facilitate export development created this mechanism to enable exporters to submit their issues to the highest levels of state institutions that cannot be reached easily by a trader. The unique feature of the Exporters’ Forum is the participation of the private sector and the public sector to resolve issues, with the political leadership represented by the relevant minister together with direct ministry-level interventions providing solutions to address those issues.
The EDB has organized a two day Seminar for Development Officers and Regional Officers of the EDB on 3rd and 4th July 2019 at the 3rd-floor auditorium of the EDB with the participation of 60 participants Under the National Export Strategy.
The Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) is planning to hold the 23rd Presidential Export Awards Ceremony under the patronage of President Maithripala Sirisena on 19 September at the BMICH
The Sri Lanka Port Authority (SLPA) has deferred the proposed hike in port tariffs until December, to support the economy in the aftermath of Easter Sunday attacks, SLPA Chairman Kavan Ratnayaka told Mirror Business.
The logistics industry is reshaping and evolving its role to facilitate a new order of global trade, e-commerce and to reach out to the 21st century consumer with flexibility and speed, modernising the global supply chains. For this reason, strategic distribution hubs connected by air and sea and proximity to markets and transportation hubs makes a location suitable for international logistics to provide services at minimal costs.
Sri Lanka, India and Japan yesterday signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) for the development of the long awaited East Container Terminal in the Colombo harbour.
Given Sri Lanka’s strategic geographic location along the main east-west sea route in the Indian Ocean, at the crossroads of the fastest growing region of the world with proximity to many emerging markets, the Country is ideally positioned as a very viable hub in the South Asian Region. Underscoring Sri Lanka’s attractiveness as a hub, the Port of Colombo is globally recognized among the top dozen ‘best connected’ container ports worldwide, with all major container shipping lines using it as the primary regional hub for transshipment to and from the sub-continent.
The Colombo Port container volumes indicates an increase in the month of April 2019 by 9.1% compared to the same period last year.
Transforming Sri Lanka into the hub of the Indian Ocean, with a knowledge-based, highly competitive and social-market economyis the objective of the Vision 2025 policy document of the Government.Making the transistion to anexport, FDI and tourism orientedcountry is the only optionfor Sri Lanka to create better jobs for the youth of our country and to graduate to a higher income economy.
As per the instructions of the Hon. Malik Samarawickrama, Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade, Export Development Board organized a meeting with the key Exporters and Investors on Friday 03rd May 2019 at the 3rd Floor Auditorium to discuss the current situation of the country.
The final workshop on National Port Master Plan (NPMP) organised together with the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Southern Development and the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) was held last week at Hotel Kingsbury, Colombo with a large gathering of local and foreign professionals.
A meeting was convened recently by the Hon. Malik Samarawickarama, Minister of Development Strategies & International Trade (MoDSIT), to discuss the progress of the Logistics Strategy of the National Export Strategy. Mr. S T Kodikara, Secretary of MoDSIT, Mr. J M Thilakaratne Banda, Addl. Secretary of Ministry of Transport & Civil Aviation (MoTCA), Mr. Dhammika Ranatunga, Chairman – Airport & Aviation Services Ltd (AASL), Mrs. Indira Malwatte, Chairperson & CE of Sri Lanka Export Development Board(EDB), Mr. Upali de Zoysa, Addl. Managing Director of Sri Lanka Ports Authority(SLPA) participated at the meeting along with the officials from the Ministry of Ports & Shipping and Southern Development. The Minister commended the participants on their commitment to the national endeavor to implement the Logistics Sector Strategy of NES.
A full-scale IT infrastructure drive is currently underway to transform Colombo — Sri Lanka’s busiest port — into a ‘smart port,’ Ports, Shipping and Southern Development Minister Sagala Ratnayaka has announced. “Transforming Colombo into a ‘smart port’is a timely need,” the Minister said, adding that Rs. 929 million had been allocated for the project, which has been included in the Asian Development Bank-supported master plan for Sri Lanka’s port development. Ratnayaka said Colombo’s transformation into a smart port would ensure the development of a collaborative approach that would make the port smart in terms of flow, situation or customer management.
The National Export Strategy (NES) is progressing in the right direction. It has six focused areas and is expected to provide the impetus for the export drive supporting economic growth, Chairperson of the Export Development Board (EDB), Indira Malwatte said.
Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) won the Ports Authority of the Year 2019 Award by the Global Ports Forum (GPF) for the second consecutive year at the GPF awards ceremony 2019 followed by the conference forum held at the Hyatt Regency Dubai Deira, in the United Arab Emirates on 20 February.
