|
|
 |
 |
| Sunday, 24 November 2002 |
 |
|
 |
Business |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
|
Smart People Smart Island e-Sri Lanka Smart People Smart Island, the ICT (information and Communication Technology) Development Roadmap, was launched by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe last week. The objective of the roadmap is to take the dividends of ICT to every village, citizen and business and also transform the way the Government works. ICT will be used to develop Sri Lanka's economy, alleviate poverty and improve the quality of life and opportunities for all citizens. e-Sri Lanka would ensure that ICT would be a mainstay of the country's economy in the next decade, said Prime Minister Wickremesinghe at the launch, which coincided with the 40th anniversary of IBM Sri Lanka. He said the country is facing two challenges; one to end the war and work for peace and the other to create a vibrant economy and a prosperous future. "It is a difficult path, but will certainly lead to peace and prosperity. Therefore, to achieve rapid economic growth, we need to effectively harness the benefits of ICT," the Prime Minister stressed. The vision of e-Sri Lanka will be achieved through a five-point strategy which comprises building implementation capacity, building national information infrastructure and enabling environment, developing ICT human resources, e-government and using ICT as a key lever for economic and social development. The programs will run concurrently and are integrated. The foundation of the strategy is to get our house in order by building implementation capacity which includes creating an ICT agency to implement the roadmap while a Cabinet-appointed task force will provide strategic direction, said Minister of Economic Reform, Science and Technology Milinda Moragoda. He said the initiative for the ICT Roadmap was taken when they were in the Opposition after visiting countries such as Malaysia, Korea and India who have changed rapidly due to ICT. Minister Moragoda said that all Sri Lankans are stakeholders in the peace process and that the dividends must be enjoyed by all. "The link between peace and development is inseparable and all Sri Lankans must have a fair share of our plans for the future," he said. Therefore, the vision for an e-Sri Lanka is to harness ICT as a lever for economic and social development, not only at the urban level, but also to link rural areas. Adviser on IT to the Ministry of Economic Reform, Science and Technology Eran Wickremaratne said the strategy includes using ICT as a key lever for economic and social development by building implementation capacity, delivering citizen services through e-government, developing ICT human resources, building a national information infrastructure and an enabling environment. He said to enable ICT, it is essential to build a national information infrastructure. This action plan would enable the provision of affordable telecommunication services and address rural connectivity, develop the national backbone, fast track cyber laws for e-commerce, e-business and e-government and develop ICT parks and stimulate demand for software applications. Delivering citizen services through e-government would be achieved through detailing priority e-government needs, identifying and prioritising financing and contracting out development of the e-government applications, addressing the communication and connectivity needs of the government and easing regulations concerning procurement practices of the government. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
