Foreign investment for a brighter Sri Lanka

Dr. Sarath Amunugama

Foreign loans are vital for infrastructure development as the Northern and Eastern Provinces lack proper infrastructure having recovered from the conflict. Therefore the Government, with the assistance of foreign loans, is planning to fill the lacuna of developing the infrastructural needs of the country. In addition infrastructure development is of importance in the development effort, said Senior Presidential Advisor and Deputy Minister of Finance & Planning, Dr. Sarath Amunugama delivering the keynote address at the Discover Sri Lanka Conference 2010 held recently.

Dr. Amunugama said that it is important to work in collaboration with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as the support IMF gives towards economies such as ours is tremendous. He said that everybody should go through the current IMF reports thoroughly as it gives a proper account of the development of economies. The Government welcomes foreign investment, especially foreign direct investment, stated the Deputy Minister. He said for a country to develop economically and to move forward in present times, foreign investment is crucial. At present, the Government is focusing on models such as that of the Public Private Partnership (PPP), which is proving to be effective.

Further he said that industries such as the garment industry can be cited as examples for being effective models with regard to foreign investment in Sri Lanka. The Deputy Minister said that as a nation, we should all encourage foreign investment, for the betterment of our country.