Saturday, 11th October 2014
The very fact that the Heads of States of Japan and China visited Sri Lanka within a space of one month is itself a great achievement and is recognition of the geostrategic position of Sri Lanka, as well as the growth prospects of Sri Lanka within the Asian region. The Chinese emphasized the fact that Sri Lanka was a part of their Maritime Silk Route. The Japanese also referred to the fact that both Japan and Sri Lanka are maritime nations. So in the first place I think both countrys' leaders have decisively emphasized that our geostrategic position gives us priority status in the future, Senior Minister for International Monetary Cooperation and Deputy Finance and Planning Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama told the Daily News during a recent interview.
Excerpts:
Q: What Global impact will President Mahinda Rajapaksa's UNGA speech and meetings with an array of world leaders have?
A: The annual meetings of the UN General Assembly is a good opportunity for the Heads of States to firstly explain the philosophy of politics and development in their respective countries and also to meet other Heads of States on the sidelines of UN sessions. Therefore, President Mahinda Rajapaksa's visit was extremely useful in the context of more countries appreciating the fact that Sri Lanka has gone out of her way in post conflict development in the Northern and Eastern Provinces.
Now the investments made by Sri Lanka in providing basic facilities to the resettled people in the North and East is becoming visible. Therefore, day by day, the situation of Sri Lanka is seen as a shining star from a global perspective.
When President Mahinda Rajapaksa himself highlighted that aspect and personally conveyed the message to the Heads of States, I think this was very beneficial to Sri Lanka.
The President also personally assessed for himself the trends regarding the activities of the UNHRC. So overall, we can say that the situation has improved when comparing with the last year.
Q: What kind of economic benefits have Sri Lanka gained by the Chinese and Japanese leaders' visits?
A: The very fact that the Heads of States of Japan and China visited Sri Lanka within a space of one month is itself a great achievement and is due recognition of Sri Lanka's geostrategic position and growth prospects within the Asian region. The Chinese emphasized the fact that Sri Lanka was a part of their Maritime Silk Route, while the Japanese referred to the fact that Japan and Sri Lanka are maritime nations. The fact that China and Japan lay special emphasis on Sri Lanka's geostrategic position, bodes well for the country's future progress. Sixty per cent of the world's shipping goes by our Southern waters. A tanker carrying vital oil supplies to Japan, China and other countries located in the far East, passes through Sri Lankan waters every seven minutes. We also have to remember that China, India and the US are concentrating on expanding their naval strength and the Indian Ocean has now become a focal point in global geostrategic concentration. This is connected very much with the rise of China and India as strong economic growth centres. Therefore, in the future, Sri Lanka with her good contacts with China, India and Japan, will attract a lot of interest, both in the region and globally.
One special aspect needs to be highlighted. That is the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with China. There will also be an agreement with Japan which will help trade between the two countries though it may not be at the level of a FTA.
In my opinion, the Chinese FTA will be a game changer. Almost all Sri Lankan products such as garments, tea, rubber, rice, gems and jewellery, IT, will find new markets in the growing Chinese economy. The balance of trade between China and Sri Lanka will become beneficial to both countries. Therefore, the Sri Lankan industry, both the manufacturing sector and the services sector can look forward to better times ahead, after signing of the FTA.
We have to remember that we have FTAs with two of the fastest growing economies as well as the two most populous countries in the world, namely India and China. This is a configuration that many countries cannot boast of.
Many countries in our region which have relationships with China and India are facing various internal and external conflicts.
Sri Lanka is the only country which is not only peaceful but also growing as an economy and is in a good position therefore of making the best use of opportunities availed by these FTAs.
Q: You recently attended the Invest Sri Lanka Forum in New York. What kind of response did you get? What is the overall progress with regard to foreign investment?
A: The Sri Lanka Forum held in New York was a great success. The organizers envisaged about 75 participants attending this meeting, but, actually over 250 participants turned up. There was a lot of interest in investing in Sri Lanka, and we were also able to explain the present political and economic situation in Sri Lanka, particularly, the post conflict gains made by the country. Our access to a large number of decision makers at this investment forum helped create a favourable impression for the country among US investors.
Q: Sri Lanka has now achieved eight per cent annual growth. Please comment.
A: We are very happy that Sri Lanka is on the growth path of seven to eight per cent development in GDP terms. Even more significant than that is the fact that we have been able to sustain this growth for over a five year period in spite of natural calamities and the global economic down turn, particularly in the US and the West. It is very important that we now continue with those policies which helps us take this country towards middle income status.
Q: The budget is just a month away. Can ordinary people expect any relief measures?
A: Already, considerable relief has been given by way of reduction of electricity and fuel tariffs. These should impact on all aspects of our economy. Also employees who have been agitating for salary increases etc., would also probably get relief.
Q: Will there be any measures in the next budget to further stimulate the economy?
A: The government's strategy of achieving self sufficiency in our basic food needs will continue. We have seen considerable success in these sectors. Programs such as Divi Neguma have already achieved great success.
Q: Various persons and groups interpreted the Uva PC election result in different ways. What is your assessment of the Uva Provincial Council Election result?
A: As regards the Uva Provincial Council Election result, the most important thing is that the United People's Freedom alliance (UPFA) won it. In politics you either win or lose. There are no consolation prizes for the losers. Also one cannot interpolate the Uva election statistics on a national basis. Statistically then you have to take all Provincial Council Election results in which the UPFA won, except in the North. There is no doubt that the UPFA will emerge the winner in any future election, no matter whether it's Presidential election or General election that will be held in 2015.
From : http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=features/sri-lanka-key-player-asia-dr-amunugama
