SAARB to achieve cleaner and efficient production in Lanka

by Elmo Leonard

In a bid to keep SAARC nations clean, and its industrial corporates viable and competitive, Colombo will be the venue for the inaugural meeting of the 'Charter of South Asian Alliance for Responsible Business' (SAARB) in November this year. The forum is hosted by The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC).

All South Asian countries are members of SAARB and a large number of experts on relevant subjects will attend the meeting.

At home, the nation's private sector is being urged to adhere to environment compliance while continuing industrial activity. CCC, last week launched the 'Promotion of eco-efficient productivity (PEP) project' funded by the Netherlands.

While the private sector companies are eligible to apply and will receive 50 percent of implementation cost, special consideration will be given to SMEs and women entrepreneurs, with 65 percent of cost, CCC assistant director, Chandrarathna Vithanage said.

Man's expansion and industrialisation was threatening the environment; in 1956 the island's forest cover was 41 percent, while the last survey in 1999 revealed 22 percent cover, CCC secretary general, Prema Cooray said quoting Department of Forest statistics.

Dutch Ambassador, Reynout Van Dirk said that his heart was with the entrepreneurs of Sri Lanka. Thus, he advised corporates that adhering to environmental friendly practices was not an expense, but in the long term, an asset to the industry. In that respect, the Dutch envoy urged companies to be self-regulatory in clean environment practices.

CCC chairman, Mahen Dayananda said that the regulatory authorities were trying their utmost to minimise the adverse impact on the environment, by clamping down environmental regulations, but the problem could not be solved. Many firms were now going for voluntary certification as ISO 1400, ISO 2200 and others to minimise the use of natural resources and preserve such natural wealth for future generations.

CCC, in its attempt to minimise the harmful impact on the environment, had undertaken diverse initiatives to encourage the private sector, including the World Bank CleanNet Project.

"I hope you will make maximum use of the assistance provided by this project to embark on new eco-friendly designs," Dayananda told a packed-sitting of corporates.

The main goal of the project is to achieve cleaner and efficient production in Sri Lanka, thereby contributing towards greater corporate social responsibility, while strengthening market positions of industries.

It was also hoped that the concepts developed will be embodied into the Sri Lankan business culture, thus paving way for sustainable development. Among its objects, made out at the launch, was the adoption of environmentally sustainable technologies.