Address By Anura Priyadharshana Yapa, Minister of Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion at the Vietnam Business Forum

It is important to go back to the history of this meeting that was scheduled as a result of the Sri Lanka-Vietnam Joint Commission held in Colombo last August. Earlier this month another Vietnamese delegation headed by Dr Do Huu Hao, Vice Minister of Industry and Trade was in Sri Lanka and held a series of discussions with the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka.

I should perhaps start by outlining the objective of my mission, which is to attract Vietnamese investment into Sri Lanka at a crucial time in our country’s history.

In many ways Sri Lanka and Vietnam share similarities. If one leaves aside our remarkable geographical similarities and a shared Buddhist cultural heritage, our two countries and their peoples have gone through a protracted conflict that took a heavy toll on our development.

As in Vietnam’s case, we are now trying to develop and get ahead. Sri Lanka needs to make up for the time she has lost from about 26 years of conflict.

Sri Lanka is now taking an innovative approach by re-examining all aspects impacting on the nation in a world environment that is consistently changing.

On the economic front, our policy’s guiding principle will be to sustain economic growth. To achieve that objective, the injection of FDI into our economy will play a paramount role in that regard.

The Board of investment of Sri Lanka is therefore aggressively promoting investment that included hosting a number of targeted road shows such as this one in Ho Chi Minh City.

The advantage that we have with regards to Vietnam is that in your country we have a longstanding ally. But while we have excellent political relations, the economic interaction between Sri Lanka and Vietnam is negligible. We are dealing with an area where a lot more can be achieved, if our delegations have the goodwill and the spirit of innovation to change the status quo.

Let me therefore put forward a number of suggestions where economic co-operation between Sri Lanka and Vietnam may be possible and which our two delegations can evaluate as a possible way forward.

The manufacture of rubber-based products in Sri Lanka is in my view an area that offers considerable potential. Sri Lanka, just like Vietnam does have natural rubber. We have already industries, which are rubber based such as the manufacture of solid rubber tyres and of rubber gloves. Vietnamese investors could look at the possibility of more advanced products such as automobile parts.

I also see a potential for tourism related projects. With the end of the conflict in Sri Lanka, we have regained control over nearly two third s of our coastline, which means that there are considerable opportunities for projects such as hotels along the coastline.

Agriculture and food processing projects are another area where our two countries can co-operate. The end of the conflict has resulted in the availability of large tracts of unutilized land. What is needed is agricultural production with value addition, which will lead to greater creation of wealth. We believe that Vietnam has made considerable strides in that area and may have the necessary know-how in this important sector.

I also would like to see some Vietnamese investment in light industries notably in sectors such as textiles and apparel. As you may know, this is a highly developed sector in Sri Lanka and indeed our main export earner. Vietnamese investors may look at manufacture of electrical and electronic goods, where Sri Lanka has made some strides.

These are some more sectors where Vietnamese investment can flow into, should your enterprises opt to invest in Sri Lanka. I am thinking of areas such as aquaculture and upgrading our plantations sector. We are also trying to develop an automobile industry in Sri Lanka as we already assemble vehicles on a small scale.

And of course as you would have heard when your delegations visited Sri Lanka, our country will soon be starting offshore oil exploration.

I would like to make a case as to why an investor should opt for Sri Lanka.

Our geographical location is without any doubt highly strategic since it is at the crossroads of the major shipping lines.

Furthermore Sri Lanka benefits from having a labour force that is both highly skilled as well as capable of undertaking any task.

I also think that our distinguished Vietnamese friends will understand how international agreements can play a major role in securing investments.

Sri Lanka-made products have duty free access to the Indian market under a free trade agreement. They also enjoy similar benefits with Pakistan and have duty free access to the European Union under the GSP + agreement. These are points Vietnamese investors need to consider when evaluating the option to invest in Sri Lanka.

I will also invite Vietnamese investors to consider starting projects in the newly liberated Northern and Eastern Provinces, which have suffered from damage or neglect due to the war.

Considerable opportunities exist in those areas and officials of the BOI present here can provide you with the required information and assistance in that connection. They will also provide you with the necessary details on the special incentives offered under the BOI regime.