Decades of wrong economic policies and failure to carry out proper reforms led to Sri Lanka’s economic crisis, said Chairman of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE), Member of the Parliament Dr Harsha De Silva.
He stated this in making the keynote address at the Economic Freedom Summit 2024 hosted by Advocata Institute at BMICH on Monday. Silva said several government and private institutions have been destroyed by corruption and corruption has become a disaster.
He pointed out that it’s a great necessity to strengthen the governance to prevent corruption. The MP also highlighted that more wealth can be generated through a competitive market and through that economic and social prosperity can be created in the country.
It was revealed that Sri Lanka ranks 156 out of 165 countries in terms of openness to international trade. Speaking at the discussion Silva said “If we take our country as a relative example, in 1995 Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Vietnam exported USD 3.5 billion each. Last year our exports were worth USD 12 billion while Bangladesh exports increased to USD 80 billion and Vietnam’s to USD 400 billion.”
He also said that when Vietnam exports are USD 400 Bn, its imports are only around 380 billion dollars hence maintaining a good import and export balance. He also said that many global manufactures have also opened in Vietnam and today there are 27 iPhone factories in Vietnam. These have paved the way to create high income employment opportunities for Vietnamese.
It was revealed that Sri Lanka ranks 156 out of 165 countries in terms of openness to international trade.
THUSHAN JAYASURIYA