Council for national policies
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The trio was in conversation under the margosa tree when Aldoris, the choon-paan karaya, came along in his tuk-tuk with breakfast goodies.After purchasing maalu paan and kimbula bunis, they returned to the margosa tree where Kussi Amma Sera, resuming the conversation, said: “Me davas wala deshapalagnayan-gen kisima wedak ne (Politicians these days are useless).”
Responded Mabel Rasthiyadu: “Eka ithin haemadama thubunu prashnayak-ne. Aluth deyak neme-ne. Balannako G.L. Peiris lajja nethuwa aanduwata viruddawa katha karana heti eh aanduwe eya hitiyata Gotabaya yatathe (That has always been the issue and is nothing new. Look at how G.L. Peiris is shamelessly criticising a government he was once part of – under Gotabaya).”
Joining the conversation, Serapina remarked: Deshapalagnayanta bohoma keti mathaka thiyenne (Politicians have short memories).”
They had a valid point – politicians indeed have short memories and conveniently forget about policies and decisions they were once part of.
As I gathered my thoughts on assessing what the topic should be this week, the phone rang. It was a pleasant call from DOSAI Danny – my verti-clad friend from Trincomalee, and he had an interesting question (which eventually became the topic of my column).
“Hello… hello, nice to hear from you after a long time,” I said.
“Yes…yes, there were many issues in Trincomalee particularly with regard to the cost of fishing and the fuel crisis,” he said. Danny has a stake in this sector.
“I was interested in a recent comment made by the President where he had spoken on the need for a national policy. What is a national policy?” he asked.
In a recent speech, President Ranil Wickremesinghe has said the country needs a national policy that does not change with every government that comes to power and he invited everyone to commit to building the country on one national policy without party differences. He also invited everyone to join in developing a national policy framework through a National Council.
On paper this sounds like a good proposal. “A national policy as enunciated by the President is a structure where decisions taken in any sector don’t change when governments change. It ensures continuity and sustainability. But it needs to get the approval of all political parties and civil society,” I said.
“Ah that sounds like a good idea. I hope it gets off the ground,” he said.
“That is the hope but given the politics practised today, it’s highly doubtful as to whether political parties will endorse what their opponents have proposed,” I said.
This is not the first time the topic of national policies has been discussed without any success.
Sri Lanka needs national policies for a wide range of sectors. Take education as an example: This sector needs vital reforms and one reform is the subject of English (the international language of commerce, industry and services). The teaching of this subject in government schools is ad hoc and there is no consistency, at times due to the lack of a teacher in a village school.
Reforms in this sector should also take into account new topics like STEM, an acronym for the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. This is a growing area of study particularly with the world moving into high-tech and transformation to the fourth industrial revolution which relies on technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data (BD) and the Internet of Things (IoT). There should be a shift or equal prominence given to STEM subjects – along with medicine, engineering and arts – as STEM is still not popular in universities. For all this, a sound knowledge of English is of paramount importance and if political parties can unanimously decide on consistency in the teaching of English across the country, then the first battle in consistent national policies would have been won.
Then take taxes, vis-à-vis the need for a national policy: The tax system is currently messed up which adversely affects business and in particular foreign investors. Taxes have to be consistent to enable smooth business decisions. A foreign investor who invests in Sri Lanka needs to be assured that the policies won’t change in the first five years of the investment. Currently, there is a major issue over the standard corporate income tax (CIT) rate increasing to 30 per cent from 24 per cent. No investor would be interested in investing in Sri Lanka if we have a shaky tax system. Local businesses would also opt to channel excess funds into high-yielding treasury bills, rather than reinvestment in the business.
In a statement, the Joint Apparel Association Forum said while it supports the need for the proposed tax reforms as the government is challenged for options to raise much-needed revenue, the “resulting consequences are dire and may have disastrous outcomes for an industry that is striving to increase export income, local value addition, foreign direct investments, sustaining employee security and economic growth”.
Social welfare is another area that requires a sustainable policy. Ad hoc changes over the years have resulted in additional burdens on the budget and poor targeting, an issue that was raised by the World Bank some years ago where it was revealed that families who had progressed and lifted themselves from the cycle of poverty continued to receive Samurdhi benefits.
A national policy on exports is another prerequisite for economic development, and, in this case, a tax structure that won’t change under different governments.
Another area of concern is migration where the policies are lopsided. On one side, labour migration is encouraged – now with public workers being given five years no-pay leave for overseas employment and even locally in the private sector – while on the other hand, Sri Lanka is experiencing a worrying brain drain. Private sector firms are reporting an exodus of workers for overseas jobs as the screws are tightening on insufficient income for basic needs in their families. Several dozens of doctors have left the country.
What happens when Sri Lanka eventually recovers – in five to six years – and the economy needs more labour – skilled and unskilled? A few years ago, the construction sector was short of labour as many unskilled workers went to West Asia and the country was reliant on workers imported from China, India, Nepal and Myanmar. This time when the economy recovers, we may have to import skilled and professional workers as most Sri Lankans working in the West are unlikely to return.
There are many other areas which need national and consistent policies. The proposal for a National Council on National Policies should be encouraged and the support of all political parties secured. However, as Kussi Amma Sera brought in my second mug of tea, saying that “deshapalagnayo me rata vinasha karala (politicians have ruined this country),” my thoughts were on whether politicians would rise above politics and adopt statesmanlike postures on national policies or continue on their path of destruction. Your guess is as good as mine!
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