Go for locally-made vehicles - President

by Surekha Galagoda

President Mahinda Rajapaksa called upon statutory government bodies and permit holders to buy Sri Lankan made vehicles from next year to promote the 'Buy Sri Lankan' Be Sri Lankan, concept launched by Mawbima Lanka Foundation.

Addressing the gathering at the Soorya Sinha certificate award ceremony, President Rajapaksa said that prior to the 70s was an era when our people valued Sri Lankan products and several initiatives were taken.

There was a wake up call in the industrial sector too to manufacture our requirements in the country but unfortunately due to the economic policies of successive governments this changed and we became beggars. Therefore the national program to promote local brands and strengthen local entrepreneurs is very commendable.

The government doesn't intend to feed its people by putting them to debt. We are still paying the loans we took to purchase wheat flour in the 60s and the 70s. Therefore we have taken several initiatives to strengthen the local market.

Referring to the increasing milk powder prices President Rajapaksa said that it is a good opportunity to improve the conditions of the dairy farmer and added let us turn every threat into an opportunity so that we will be self-sufficient in milk in the near future.

He said don't condemn imported products but instead showcase the value of the Sri Lankan products which will make our people buy it. The quality and packing of the product in this modern day and age should also be taken into account, said the President.

President of the Mawbima Lanka Foundation Ariyaseela Wickramanayaka said that the sun shines on our country 365 days of the year but we import 1.3 million tonnes of food items from countries where the sun shines for only three months of the year.

Our country kills between 3,000-3,500 milch cows while there are many cows that are not being milched.

We need the computer and the mobile phone but if we don't cultivate we will die without food. Therefore it is time to stop blaming others and think what each one of us can do for the country.

Leader of the JVP Somawansa Amarasinghe said that this is a great start. The government should support and help local enterprises, as it is the duty and responsibility of the government.

He said that most of the countries in the region have recorded a growth of 10% or more but none of them has achieved it by destroying the national economy. Instead they protected and nurtured local industries and achieved this high growth.

Minister of Industrial Development Kumara Welgama said that we have to support entrepreneurs who are engaged in manufacturing world-class products.

Thurty-four brands received certificates at the Soorya Sinha ceremony. Wickramanayaka said that our strategic approach is to introduce a logo or symbol to represent local brands so as to differentiate them from non local brands, communicate the value of the symbol to local consumers, encourage consumers to make informed purchasing decisions, add emotional value to it and inculcate the concept of patriotism in all promotional activities (patriotic marketing).

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