Blueprint for national revival

The ongoing Sri Lanka Development Forum presents the State with an important opportunity to showcase to the world its 10 year development plan and to enlist global support for it.

Today, the second and concluding day of the Forum is of special significance to this country because the focus will be on this blueprint for Sri Lanka's development over the next 10 years.

Titled, 'Mahinda Chintana: Vision for a New Sri Lanka; a Ten Year Horizon Development Framework 2006-2016', the document will outline to Sri Lanka's development partners, President Mahinda Rajapaksa's forward vision for Sri Lanka, with special emphasis on equitable development.

The Government is quite rightly intending to elaborate in the concluding sessions today what it means to do by way of - mainly - rural development and infrastructure expansion in the less developed areas of Sri Lanka. Session IV, for instance, would focus on 'Randora / Gama Neguma: Development of Infrastructure and Lagging Regions'.

No one with an awareness of the finer issues in development would contest the relevance of this focus. Today, one of the most contentious issues in the debate on development in this country, is how equitable or fair our growth experience really is.

Regional imbalances in growth have taken on troubling proportions with the Western Province experiencing disproportionate growth while the rest of the provinces lag far behind. The Western Province on the one side and the North Central and Uva Provinces on the other, are almost at polar opposites as regards growth while the national growth average is seven per cent and over.

Apparently, to have steady growth is one thing and development or equitable development, to be precise, another. Development in the truest sense of the word cannot exist alongside wide income disparities, whether they be among social groups or regionally. Growth should accompany equity or evenness in income distribution if we are to have development in the real sense of the word.

We are glad that these issues are now receiving the serious attention of the State through its numerous rural development programmes.

While examining the rural economy, it could be found that the lack of infrastructure facilities plays a huge role in the underdevelopment of the provinces. How could the farming population, for instance, transport its produce if there are no substantial road or transport facilities? How could they preserve and market their produce if there are no storage facilities? How could they learn of new markets if there are no communication facilities?

All these and more needs are now being addressed by the State through the 'Randora' and 'Gama Neguma' programmes, for instance. In other words, the State is pursuing development in the real sense of the word. That is, the economic empowerment of the people is being seriously sought.

All this is in keeping with the Mahinda Chintana principles which essentially seek a national rejuvenation. It is gladdening to note that this rejuvenation is to envelope all regions of this land; North, South, East and West.

This was stressed by President Rajapaksa in his address to the Sri Lanka Development Forum yesterday. He quite rightly pointed out that developing the North-East was one way of eradicating terrorism. Thus a holistic vision of development emerges which sees the economic empowerment of all as a key to resolving our political conflicts.

It was also in Sri Lanka's interest for President Rajapaksa to outline to the global community, the adverse repercussions for all by LTTE terrorism. We hope the awareness of our donor community of the havoc sown by LTTE terror would have been heightened by the President's address.

However, there is no ignoring the fact that the country and its people hold the key to the resolution of its problems. Put in simple terms, we, as a collectivity, need to work tirelessly from now on to relieve Sri Lanka of its burdens. We hope this would be realised by the Cabinet of Ministers, which has just been sworn in. Selfless labour for Sri Lanka and her people is the foremost need.

We also hope the world community sees for itself, the steady tsunami recovery process which is currently on.

It was not by accident that the Economic Forum was held in Galle; a city shattered by the tsunami. However, Galle today presents the image of a city on a quick recovery trail. So, transparent has been the State's handling of tsunami rebuilding.

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