Govt must encourage self-employment, SMEs

Need for more entrepreneurs in the country :

Sanjeevi Jayasuriya

There is a need for more entrepreneurs in the country to generate employment opportunities as Sri Lanka is focusing on limited fields of job avenues, Colombo University’s Business Economics Head Prof. H.D. Karunaratne said.

Additional jobs were not generated to meet the demand according to the substantial population growth in the past.

Out of the total labour force there are only three percent business owners and this should be addressed properly, Prof. H.D. Karunaratne told Daily News Business.

He said action should be taken to encourage more self-employment opportunities and SMEs.

The increase in number of entrepreneurs will facilitate the generation of jobs and shifting in the labour market.

There is a high demand for public sector jobs and it has increased from 0.8 million to 1.2 million at present.

“There is a tendency that people are securing higher education.

This alone will not lead to job creation. It is necessary to increase production. Manufacturing sector growth could generate more jobs,” Prof. Karunaratne said.

He urged the Government to take steps to produce more entrepreneurs.

“Micro financing and banking sector need to be geared to meet the expected economic development.

These sectors will play a major role in future and it is necessary to promote industrial sector lending to set up industries,” he said.

The human resource should be trained in identified growth sectors such as tourism, IT and agriculture.

A development plan is vital and income generation needs to shift from the Western Province to other provinces.

It is important to provide adult education to meet the needs of changing job environment and to develop soft skills and language skills. A strategy to reduce the high level of school dropouts is needed.

The country should promote the “quality circle” concept as in Japan as an approach to encourage and motivate job seekers.

It is also important to have even professional discussions as a measure of improving productivity and sustainability.

There is a need for more professional bodies and professionals to meet the demand in available job opportunities.

These professional bodies should be given targets and monitor quality and accreditation.

It is time for educational reforms that address the high failure rate.

The education system should be changed to include training development needs to be more result oriented, Prof. Karunaratne said.