Nanotechnology will leapfrog development

By Lalin Fernandopulle

Nanotechnology is the key to drive development and making Sri Lanka the Wonder of Asia, Senior Minister for Scientific Affairs Prof. Tissa Vitharana told a forum on ‘Technology and Development : Can Nanotechnology leapfrog the Development Process in Sri Lanka’ organised by the Society for International Development last week.

He said that the secret of economic development in a country is technology. America achieved vast development due to its focus on science, technology and innovation.

The US President Barack Obama increased investments for science, technology and innovation by one percent of the GDP and it has paid rich dividends for the country today.

“Many industrially developed countries achieved this feat because of its investments in science and technology.

Nanotechnology is the next level of development and if we are to keep pace with the growth in other countries by expanding our export income, we need to pay greater attention to developing niche products through nanotechnology,” Prof. Vitharana said.

Panelists at the forum while commending the national initiative to develop nanotechnology through the nanotechnology park at the Sri Lanka Institute of Nano Technology in Homagama, said that there is much room for expanding the manufacture of nanotechnology based products such as garments and other utilities.

“Sri Lanka is blessed with a diversity of resources which have not been adequately tapped for nanotechnoly development.

There has to be more focus and the industries should identify the potential of using nanotechnology to develop products,” a panelist said.

Prof. Vithara drawing a parallel from South Korea which had a per capita GDP of around US$ 82 in the 1960s while Sri Lanka had a per capita income of US$ 320, said that South Korea's per capita income had increased to US$ 29,000 two years ago whereas in Sri Lanka it was only US$ 2,800.

This was due to the great strides it had made in technological innovation.

“We need to go beyond traditional million dollar export industries such as tea, rubber and coconut, to billion dollar advanced technology industries such as bio-technology, ICT and nanotechnology which are trillion dollar export markets.

Rapid value addition of raw materials for exports is essential to capture new markets,” he said.

Minister of Technology, Research and Atomic Power, Patali Champika Ranawaka said that while developing nanotechnology in Sri Lanka is a good move, the expertise in the country should be pooled to take it to the next level of growth.

The focus should also be on developing bio technology, marine technology and space technology which will bring in revenue to the country and help position it on the global map.

The Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology (SLINTEC) plays a catalytic role in nano based industrial development.

The institute has been a perfect model of private-public partnership. Nanotechnology is the manipulation of matter on an atomic, molecular and supra molecular scale.

A more generalised description of biotechnology is the manipulation of matter with at least one dimension sized from one to 100 nanometers.

The flagship initiative has been developed and managed by SLINTEC, a private-public partnership. It is funded by the government and several private sector organisations.

The government has invested Rs. 1771.5 million and the private sector, comprising MAS, Brandix, Dialog, Haleys, Loadstar have contributed Rs. 310 million so far. Lankem joined the initiative recently.