Department of Commerce all at sea in new ministry reshuffle

By K. Godage 

I was surprised (and horrified) to find that the Department of Commerce had virtually been downgraded in the administrative structure of the new administration. After over three decades in the Foreign Service and having served in many missions of our country, I must confess that I always held the view that the Department of Commerce, which has served us for over six decades, was not recognised as one of the most important Government departments of our country, considering the importance of commerce for our wellbeing. 

I always found the members of the Commerce Department to be efficient. They also brought to bear a certain commitment and professionalism to their work. My thoughts go back to the era of M.J. Mariadasan, J.R. Samaranayake, Douglas Jayasekera and some others who were Directors; they were institutions. 

 According to the Gazette Notification of 21.09.2015, all  key functions performed by the department are listed under the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade (pages 67-68 of the gazette notification) and the Department of Commerce is  listed under the Ministry of Industry and Commerce (pages 29-31 of the gazette notification). Yes all of the key functions performed by the department are listed under the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade (pages 67-68 of the Gazette Notification). The Department of Commerce belongs there. The Minister of Industry should be Minister of Industrial Promotion, not of Commerce.    

This is indeed a confusing situation; who may I ask decided on the allocation of functions? Obviously not those who knew anything about the workings of the department and its position in the administrative structure of the Government. I am at a loss to understand the rationale behind the decision taken by the new Government. This top-down decision-making must be avoided for it is not in the national interest. The future seems very bleak for the professional officers of the Department of Commerce.

Considering the vital importance of commerce to the country, I cannot understand why the Government has failed to realise the true potential of this income-earning department; even now this is one of the most inadequately staffed departments when one considers what they can and should be delivering. One has only to compare the staffing of the commercial sections of missions of other Asian countries to see how we have neglected this vital area.   

 The professional staff of this department deserves a treatment better than this when the new Government is seriously contemplating reapplying for GSP Plus trade concessions from the European Union for which I understand the department has already commenced the necessary groundwork.

 I am frankly very disappointed; I expected the new administration led by PM Ranil Wickremesinghe to be more professional and to live up to our expectations. The PM must now reflect and review the matter for his and the country’s interest.

(The writer can be reached at [email protected])