Richlist’s 2012 edition debuts

The third edition of Richlist, the book about the richest and most successful business people in Sri Lanka, has been launched after a hiatus of four years.

The book contains short descriptions of each of the people and companies in the book. Important world and Sri Lanka economic data are interspersed throughout the book.

The book is targeted at chairmen, managing directors, and directors of companies, as well as diplomats and financial sector analysts. Richlist is the result of the considerable research by the Richlist team and is the product of over 20 years of economic history analysis.

A significant difference of the new edition is the inclusion of charts highlighting key world economic and social indicators. This has been done in order to inform the Sri Lankan audience about the position of the Sri Lankan economy in relation to other world economies.

The increases in the Colombo Stock Exchange from 2008 and the end of the war have resulted in old fortunes getting larger and the emergence of new players in the book. This is marked by the inclusion of new players in the leisure industry among others. The longevity of Richlist companies will depend on their willingness to go public, invest in real estate and

The need for Sri Lanka to get into high value manufacturing exports is one of the lessons one can learn from looking at the key exports of countries like China, India, Malaysia and Thailand (on page 11). Targeting of high value export manufacturing industries has to be the priority for Sri Lankan exports.

In education, the link between quality secondary and tertiary systems, and economic development can be ascertained by looking at the rankings of high school systems (OECD/PISA) and universities in the world. The rich list companies need to help restructure Sri Lanka’s education. The neglect of education undermines the future of society and this is clearly visible in Sri Lanka today.

Whilst the long term growth of the Sri Lankan economy looks assured, the short term outlook does not look promising. The world is faced with a new growth paradigm where developed economies will not have the growth rates required to maintain their standard of living. The continued strengthening of India, China, and other key Asian economies will be the new reality.

Richlist 2012 contains 74 pages is priced at Rs. 4,500 and is available at Odel, Lakehouse Bookshop and at 425 Galle Road/Bagatelle Road, Colombo 3. The book is available online at http://www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/430250. Submissions for the next book can be directed to [email protected].