Need for government to support young SL entrepreneurs
While the private sector, banks and other institutions progressively support young people to succeed in business ideas and put them into action, a top government official at a media conference in Colombo last week conceded that they do not have a tangible programme to support young people to become entrepreneurs.
At a media briefing held to announce the British Council – HSBC Youth Enterprise Awards 2013, Dr. Sunil Navaratne, Secretary, Ministry of Higher Education, responding to a query by a journalist on whether the government has any plan to help young people to engage in entrepreneurship, said there is no plan as such.
But he said he would discuss this idea with the Treasury Secretary who is due to visit his ministry shortly.
Dr. Navaratne’s comparison of the per capita income of Japan to Sri Lanka’s per capita income demonstrated the grave deterioration of Sri Lanka’s economy. He indicated that in 1950 Sri Lanka’s per capita income was US$89 and Japan was $90. In 2012 Sri Lanka’s per capita income was $1,000, and Japan it was $28,000.
As an entrepreneurial success, he portrayed the story of Honda of Japan and said that in 2012 Sri Lanka’s GDP was $59 billion while the sales of Honda for the same year was nearly double that at $101 billion.
He said that inculcating the culture of entrepreneurship in the people is vitally important as it is the private sector entrepreneurs who could take Sri Lanka to the world and elevate Sri Lanka as the commercial hub in Asia.
The HSBC Youth Enterprise Awards competition is designed to recognize entrepreneurship in Sri Lanka and youth between the ages of 16 to 26 who are undergoing education training in higher educational institutions and similar institutions. The winner would receive Rs 500,000, the first runner-up Rs 300,000 and the second runner-up Rs 100,000.
Ms. Sujani Gamage, a final year Management Undergraduate of the Uva Wellassa University was the winner of last year’s award of Rs. 500,000. She spoke on her success story describing how she founded a small scale business centre in Deniyaya called the ‘Kitul Corner’. She said that it was one of the most amazing experiences in her life and said that in fact changed her life.
She said, “When I first sent in my application to the British Council, I did have a doubt as to whether I would be able to win this competition, since my idea was not very technical and it was just a basic idea. I did not feel that it was that creative and I was also worried that my idea would be misused but my simple ‘Kitul Corner’ business idea was short-listed for the final selection”.
Ms. Gamage said that she realized that the British Council and HSBC were only concerned about the concept of the business idea and nothing else and noted that, “I also realised that even though an idea is so simple, if it is viable and had the potential to go into action, then indeed it would be a winning idea and it was worth to invest in it”.
On the sidelines of the media conference, Ms Gamage told the Business Times (BT) that one would be amazed to see that the idea of setting up of a wayside shop, it is the concept, potential and the viability that matters in a business plan. Being a management graduate she had the guts to float this business centre which was accepted by the British Council and the HSBC.
She expects her graduation soon, but while she is undergoing her university studies, she also put her ‘heart and soul’ into her brainchild. The ‘Kitul Corner’ is located at a vantage point bordering the Sinharaja Forest where many foreign and local tourists visit.
Most of the items sold are very simple ones and are all locally sourced like ‘Kitul Penni (treacle), Kitul Jaggery, vinegar and their purity is vouched for which has built confidence in the products and thus attracts many repeat customers. There is also an array of locally crafted ornaments available.
She said that once she has graduated, she would concentrate more on the shop and has already drawn up plans to expand her Kitul Corner concept island wide.
Ms. Harriet Gardner, acting Country Director, British Council Sri Lanka and Patrick Gallagher, CEO HSBC Sri Lanka and Maldives elaborated about the programme and explained as to how they support the vision of entrepreneurship among youth in Sri Lanka.
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