‘Thanking ITC ! How about linking our SMEs to exports?”

With the recent unveiling of trade related national projects such as NES and SLTIP, there is clear progress in the management of Sri Lanka’s international trade-and now it’s time to leverage these initiatives to move to the next level, stressed Geneva’s International Trade Centre (ITC) in Colombo on 20 July. Acknowledging ITC’s call, Sri Lanka meanwhile swiftly nudged Geneva to support the country’s SMEs so that they could take on a bigger role in the country’s exports.

“There is clear progress in the management of Sri Lanka’s international trade. We at International Trade Centre are pleased. The glass is half full for Sri Lanka’s trade, and you need to fill the rest” advised Geneva International Trade Centre (ITC)’s Executive Director Arancha González on 20 July in Colombo. ITC Director Ms González was in discussions with Sri Lankan Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen on 20 July at the Kingsbury Hotel on the side-lines of the launch of Sri Lanka Trade information Portal (SLTIP) by his Department of Commerce.

Minister Bathiudeen, addressing ITC Director Ms González thanked ITC for its role in Sri Lanka’s trade reform initiatives. “I thank the ITC for the support extended to the Government of Sri Lanka to implement the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. Both the World Bank and the ITC coordinated their activities in Sri Lanka’s trade facilitation very well. Continuous collaboration between donors and development partners is key to maximize the benefits of technical assistance in Sri Lanka” said Minister Bathiudeen and added: “In this context I would like to welcome ITC offer to further support our TIP in the coming years.  This complements World Bank’s efforts and also ensures the sustainability of the large scale trade reforms by our Unity Government. We have a registered SME base of more than one million. When adding the unregistered SME numbers, it translates into an even larger base of economic activity. These SMEs play a considerable role in our domestic consumer, supply and even value chains. As the Minister in charge of our SMEs, I believe that time has come to integrate this sector into our exports and make these brands visible globally. Today I call upon ITC to extend its support to our ongoing efforts to link SMEs to global chains.”

ITC Director Ms González praised Sri Lanka’s trade reform initiatives. “There is clear progress in the management of Sri Lanka’s international trade. We at International Trade Centre are pleased of National Export Strategy and Sri Lanka Trade Information Portal. The glass is half full for Sri Lanka’s trade, and you need to fill the rest. The NES and SLTIP should now be operationalised well. European Union is very supportive of these initiatives” said Ms González and stressed: “Sri Lanka should start leveraging this progress now. In that, progress in trade should be translated into new employment generation. The impact of structural reforms is medium to long term. In that way, Trade-to-Jobs too is a medium to long term transformation and therefore this needs to be managed politically. Sri Lanka’s immediate strategy should be to showcase what is working. Therefore, there needs to be immediate visibility for Sri Lanka’s winning brands in global markets. This means Sri Lanka should next look at where attention is not (sufficiently) paid in its trade, and should swiftly move to address them.”

Minister Bathiudeen responded: “I believe that SMEs in exports is where we should be focusing next. And I am pleased that ITC mirrors our thinking in this regard.”

Minister Bathiudeen and ITC Director Ms González also reviewed the progress of other projects (in his Ministry) supported by ITC on 20 July.