Govt. targets $2.5b in FDI for 2018

• Sets ambitious goal after hitting record $1.9b in 2017 says Finance Ministry 

The government is aiming to attract $2.5 billion in Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) this year, after reaching $1.9 billion in 2017, the Finance Ministry said in a statement on Sunday (8 April).

The record $1.9 billion FDI is four times what was achieved in 2016, and tops the previous biggest high of $1.7 billion achieved in 2014. 

However, the $1.9 billion for 2017 includes the $300 million that came as part of the payment for the Hambantota harbour deal with a Chinese company. The Finance Ministry said that the highest FDI inflows came from China, followed by Hong Kong, India and Singapore. 

The Finance Ministry credited efforts by the Government to improve ease of doing business, reduce red tape and introduce progressive legislation as reasons for the rise in FDI, and said the target for 2018 had been set at an ambitious $2.5 billion. The goal is to double FDI to $5 billion by 2020, it added.