Archives

Need to focus on human development

At first glance there may not seem to be a direct link between internal security, crime busting and human development. The latter issue figured prominently in a talk delivered by Finance Minister Dr. Sarath Amunugama at the annual sessions of the Sri Lanka Economic Association recently. He said that despite Sri Lanka's commitment to welfarism and democracy over the decades, the returns expected in the area of human development had not been harvested by the country to date.

Elaborating on this theme Minister Amunugama said: "We should strive to maximise the benefits from our investments on social welfare. Sri Lanka has a high literacy rate in the region with the provision of free education in the remotest villages, but not utilised this investment on education for human development."

Food for thought indeed, for all those concerned with Sri Lanka's development. Apparently, investing in social welfare is one thing, translating this into human development another. In other words, it doesn't necessarily follow that we would have human development in the truest sense of the word, if we routinely make an annual budgetary financial allocation for social welfare. Once the moneys for this sphere have been allocated, we need to put in an extra effort to ensure that the finances are well utilized and that the expected benefits are derived. It is true, for instance, that we have been having a free education scheme catering to hundreds and thousands of the country's children, but have we been producing the personnel needed for national development on the basis of this decades-old system? Have we been meeting the skilled manpower requirements of the country or been turning out human beings who are resourceful, ethical and creatively oriented?

With the latter questions we enter sphere of human development proper. Spending on education is one thing, then, and deriving the fullest benefits from it another.

Coming back to our initial proposition on the link between internal security and human development, we welcome very appreciatively, measures by the authorities to step-up security in the country, without putting the citizenry through grave inconveniences. A mobile police unit on wheels, for instance, which would be at the disposal of the public, is a step in the right direction.

However, it is important to recall that lack of human development sends the crime rate soaring. If we had human development along with education, social conflicts and crime would be at a minimum. This in turn would lead to relative social peace and a reduced budgetary outlay for defence and law and order.

We, therefore, hope it will be the endeavour of the authorities and the educational bureaucracy to have these linkages in mind. Without human development, Sri Lanka would gain very little.

One voice for Asia

Asia already has several blocs of nations, including SAARC, ASEAN and BIMSTEC. Is there room, or a need for one more bloc? The answer seems to be yes, judging by the response of the Asian community to the Asia Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) which will be held today and tomorrow in China.

ACD, of which Sri Lanka is a member, is somewhat different from the other blocs in that it is far less formal. Established just two years ago on a Thai initiative, it has none of the formal powers of other Asian organisations. But it is unique because it brings together high-level decision-makers in Asia for rare personal encounters in a relaxed setting.

Such personal interaction is vital in today's tension-filled world. Even the thorniest issue can be more easily discussed amicably in an informal setting, away from the prying eyes of cameras. Semi-formal or informal gatherings help develop personal contacts among the world's decision makers, so that they do not necessarily have to go through strictly formal channels in an urgent situation.

Today's ACD meeting is expected to take up some of the region's critical issues from the North Korean standoff to the Indo-Pakistani rift. They are not even on the official agenda, but given the arrangements at the two-day meet, these security matters are likely to loom large.

Chinese Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing, who will chair the talks, is to meet separately with his colleagues from Japan and South Korea, just ahead of the start in Beijing of six-nation talks on North Korea's nuclear ambitions. The foreign ministers of India and Pakistan will also meet in Qingdao in their first talks since a change of government in New Delhi.

Such developments augur well for peace in Asia, where protracted conflicts have destroyed thousands of precious lives. It signifies a trend where Asian countries try to seek each others' assistance to solve outstanding problems, without seeking the intervention of third countries in other continents. Meetings such as ACD will also enable Asia to speak in one voice in international fora.

This is precisely the goal of the ACD. According to Thailand, the ACD aims to "ultimately transform the Asian continent into an Asian community, capable of interacting with the rest of the world on a more equal footing".

It might be decades before Asia forms a cohesive alliance on the lines of the European Union, but the first steps in that direction are being taken.

www.Pathmaconstruction.com

www.ceylincoproperties.com

www.crescat.com

News | Business | Features | Editorial | Security
Politics | World | Letters | Sports | Obituaries

Produced by Lake House
Copyright © 2003 The Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Ltd.
Comments and suggestions to :Web Manager