CNCI’s expectation for local industries from Budget 2017

The Chairman of the Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI) Tissa Seneviratne

The Chairman of the Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI) Tissa Seneviratne said that their main effort and expectation is to protect and improve the industrial sector in the country.  He said that local industries are facing certain constraints in many areas which we have brought up at higher level meetings at earlier instances.  

Among such constraints are: measures of protection from dumping and under-invoicing, waste disposal in the absence of sufficient incinerating facilities, inability to submit internationally accepted quality certifications, which have become a great non-tariff barrier. CNCI expects the anti-dumping legislation will be enforced shortly, which has been proposed in the last year’s budget too. This will protect local industries from unfair competition in the market due to unethical business practices such as under-invoicing and dumping, Seneviratne said. Many industries are currently obtaining the incinerating facility from Holcim Lanka ltd which is difficult due to distance and cost. In 2014, the then Government had a plan to construct nine incinerators covering all provinces in the country. This has not been done. At the 2017 Budget, there were thoughts of erecting 50 incinerators in the country. It’s a good move and we expect expeditious implementation of the same.

For internationally accepted certifications, the Department of Commerce has been negotiating with relevant parties and we expect the Government will take action to establish internationally accepted certification bodies in Sri Lanka.

We also expect that the Government will take measures for energy generation, especially in renewable energy, by extending concessions to the private sector to encourage them to move into solar power, wind power and more for uninterrupted usage of electricity.

CNCI Chairman pointed out that the 2017 Budget has forecasted to maintain the budget deficit at 4.6% of GDP which was at 5.4% in 2016. Regulating provisions to give a 50% interest subsidy to the SMEs having a turnover between Rs. 25 m to Rs. 250 m and a number of employees from 10 to 50 and a 25% subsidy to those with a turnover between Rs. 250 m to Rs. 750 m with a number of employees from 50 to 300 seems to be an encouraging measure to boost the SME sector. The proposals to encourage local and traditional industries will result in employment generation and increase in locally manufactured products for local and export markets.   However, the implementation of the positive proposals and their continued success in creating a conducive environment for growth of the industrial sector is the expectation of the CNCI, Seneviratne concluded.