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| Tuesday, 11 January 2005 |
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by Chandani Jayatilleke Revival of the tsunami affected small and medium scale enterprises and entrepreneurs (SMEs) is of paramount importance, having considered the significant contributions these industries have made to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the past.
According to economists, the SME sector is one particular area that could be made re-operational immediately in the aftermath of tsunami. Many affected persons in the coast line were engaged in small and medium sized businesses and it is important that the authorities take swift action to revive this sector, before it is too late, said a Senior Economics Lecturer at the Colombo University, Indrajith Aponso. While providing relief is also important at this stage, the revival of the SME sector at the same time could bring more fruitful results. "Nobody wants to see them continuing to stretch their hands for relief and more relief. The burden of feeding many affected families could be relieved, if they are given an opportunity to make their own living once again, through a well planned economic system, he said answering a question by the Daily News. Having realised this importance, the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL), has come forward to support the small and medium entrepreneurs (SMEs) who have been affected by the tsunami devastation, to continue their businesses by way of providing them necessary infrastructure, which have been set up in numerous centres in these areas. The NCCSL has 15 District Associations of Small and Medium Enterprises (DASMEs) in the country, of which five are in Matara, Puttalam, Ratnapura, Matale and Anuradhapura. None of the offices located in tsunami hit areas has been damaged. These five district centres have advanced IT facilities and numerous other facilities to support SMEs. And the centres became operational almost immediately, President, NCCSL Asoka de Z. Gunasekera said. He added that the Chamber has also set up a Small and Medium Enterprise Disaster Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Fund. The one million dollar fund will be utilised to support the SMEs to rebuild their businesses and business organisations. The fund will be supported by a group of overseas Chambers and the international community. The first task of the NCCSL project will be to conduct a survey to ascertain the damages in the SME sector in these areas and how the NCCSL could help the organisations to regain the lost opportunities. The NCCSL has already sent assessment forms to various institutions and camps to collect data on SMEs. "We want to find out how they ran their businesses; the methodology; management systems; which markets they catered to, which products they manufactured, the source of raw material and the number of employees employed at these places. So that we could plan out our strategies to suit their needs," Gunasekera said. The projects have been supported by the Advanced Technology Minister. Dialog - the mobile company will provide all technology support in the rehabilitation centres. The Chamber is getting 125 graduate trainees to do the on-going survey. However, he emphasised that their attempt is to help the SMEs re-build businesses to a level far better than what they used to be. "We would introduce them to better management systems, quality improvement methods, market opportunities and international trade links," he said. Rehabilitation and reconstruction is the main need of this hour. "This SME rehabilitation project will come as part of our contribution to support this endeavour," Deputy President, NCCSL, Nirmali Samaratunga said. "We have been focusing much to develop the SME sector for the last few years. So, it was natural, for us to respond immediately and support at least a section of the business community at this hour of devastation," she said. Samaratunga, who is hoping to take over the President's chair next month said developing and continuing this project would be her priority. "And this will be done on a two-year plan in different stages," she said. This is an ideal opportunity for the whole country to get together and do the best for its development - to make use of this opportunity to be united, she said. The NCCSL will emphasise better technology, better infrastructure, proper planning, maximum utilisation of funds while carrying out this program. "Everybody else should follow these lines. We should learn a lesson from Japan's Hiroshima tragedy and how the Japanese rose from the ashes," said Gunasekera. More information on this project can be obtained from the NCCSL in Colombo, DASMEs in Matara and Kalutara and Dialog Communication Centres set up in the affected areas. |
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