Sri,Lanka,the,next,internation business, insurance Sri Lanka the next international hub, Financial Times (Sri L

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It is a well known fact that I have been steadily investing in Sri Lanka through this last decade in prime industries such ashospitality, finance and even in conglomerates like John KeellsHoldings. But what I find amusing and at times perplexing is how I am seen as a foreigner invading Sri Lankan territory, by local businessmen, due to my substantial shareholding. I have repeatedly tried to explain that my roots are in Sri Lanka - grandfather Saravanamuthu Pillai migrated from Jaffna to the then British Malaya to work in the Malayan Railways in the early 1920s and I have grown up on stories of this beautiful and brave island. My wife is Sri Lankan and her family continues to live in Colombo. I have been visiting Sri Lanka since I was a young boy and consider it my ancestral home.My investments in Sri Lanka have always been made on the basis of mystrong belief in the fundamentals of this country. And as anyone cansee, I have been proved right once again, considering the remarkableresults posted by Asia Capital PLC (of which I hold 87%). For this, Icommend Mano Nanayakkara, Chairman and MD of Asia Capital and his teamfor their excellent work in resurrecting a company which was totteringon the brink of collapse - a job well done.I very strongly believe and I had said this before - Sri Lanka has thepotential to be an international hub like Hong Kong, Singapore andperhaps even Dubai. All of them are natural geographical hubs on themap, with the ability to grow and develop simply by virtue of beinghubs. The nature of these hubs is such that no matter what happens,they have the ability to bounce back relatively quickly, after anegative turn. A key component in the success of small countries likeHong Kong and Singapore are its people. I can say the same for SriLanka, as I see this tiny island begin to rise like a shining starwith the spirit of entrepreneurship bursting at its seams.It is now time for Sri Lanka to gear itself for the next step; tomodel its business infrastructure to attract the right investors. Thefacts speak for themselves. The Sri Lankan economy has been remarkablyresilient in recent years despite the conflict. The country's GDPexpanded by 7.1 per cent year-over-year in the first quarter, drivenlargely by its strong agriculture and services sectors, robustindustrial production and soaring tourism. Despite the 26-year-oldcivil war and the ravages of natural disasters like the tsunami, SriLanka has registered a strong growth in the first decade of the 21stcentury, averaging about 6.4 per cent in the last six years and has aGDP of $48 billion with a per capita income of $5300. Notably, thenation's per capita income doubled in a period of about five yearswhile war was raging!A key factor behind this development and economic growth is governmentspending. The end of the civil war has opened up the north and east ofSri Lanka to increased crop production and has reduced the cost offood products and rapid development projects are taking off on theground, such as the construction of the massive Hambantota Port.Most importantly, peace and expectations of rapid economic growth havealready started attracting foreign investment. Last year Etisalat,UAE's largest telecom services provider divulged plans to investapproximately $163-million over six months to expand its 3G network inSri Lanka. A few months ago, Minor International, Thailand's biggesthotel operator, acquired a controlling stake in Kani Lanka Resort &Spa, at an estimated US$ 22 million to take advantage of increasedtourism to the island.Sri Lanka does not need any large billboards to advertise itspotential because the whole world can see it, but businesses need anentry point and a conduit to operate through. If these channels areblocked by red tape and unnecessary regulations, the opportunitycreated in this last year could be all but lost.We must also not forget the vast network of the Sri Lankan Diasporathat is spread across many countries, but has its roots firmlyentrenched in the motherland. In recent times inflows of remittancepayments from Sri Lankan émigrés living overseas are soaring and willlikely continue. The Diaspora are perfectly positioned to partner withSri Lankan businesses, looking to go international. This not onlyhelps smooth the road to business opportunities, but also helps forgecultural and aesthetic ties with the brethren living outside theisland.Speaking of culture, I was delighted to be part of a recent project byAsia Capital that helped showcase the land of my ancestors in all itsglory. A beautiful coffee table book titled Glorious Jaffna, apictorial representation of the splendours of the peninsula was puttogether by two talented employees of Asia Capital with our fullsupport. We hope to use this book as a tool to raise funds for aneducation project in the North.According to the University Grants Commission (UGC) of Sri Lanka, thecountry's youth literacy rate stands at a remarkable 98%! The UnitedNations Development Project (2009) report on ranking of countries byliteracy rates shows Sri Lanka at No.94 with a literacy rate of 90.8%,way ahead of its neighbour India at No. 149 with only a 66% literacyrate. The high literacy rates, low mortality rates and the steadilydeclining population growth, reflect the country's progress in thesphere of social development as well.We are now in a brand new year that is brimming with excitingopportunities and endless possibilities. In the Asia Capital AnnualReport 2010, its Chairman Mano Nanayakkara says that 2011 will be theyear of consolidation, recovery and growth. The company is undertakinga restructuring exercise in order to reposition itself as aninvestment firm. I believe that the Sri Lankan economic strategy wouldbenefit by following this cue. 2011 should be a time forconsolidation, for gathering up forces, marshalling energies andbringing together the many aspects that are necessary for positioningSri Lanka as a world class economy.(Entrepreneur businessman Vijay Eswaran is the founder ofmultimillion-dollar global conglomerate QI Group. Eswaran is also aphilanthropist who has generously donated to several institutions inSri Lanka, including providing the country's only paediatriclaparoscopy machine to date to the Lady Ridgeway Hospital. He is themajority shareholder of Asia Capital and a significant investor in theColombo Stock Market.)