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International
coir convention The event is organised by the Sri Lankan Coir Cluster, an industry grouping of millers, manufacturers, exporters, academics and government officials. The Cluster was formed to increase Sri Lanka's competitiveness in the coir industry. It is one among eight clusters formed under The Competitiveness Initiative, a project funded by the United States Agency for International Development assisting Sri Lankan industries achieve and maintain international competitiveness. The convention will be held on June 13-14 with the participation of about 15 countries, under the theme, 'Beyond Nature's Versatility, Towards Global Excellence', a statement by the Coir Cluster said. It is backed by the Common Fund for Commodities, the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the Coconut Development Authority. About 40,000 people are directly employed in the coir industry, which though bringing in foreign exchange earnings of about US $52 million annually, has the potential to increase revenue to a much larger extent, if the necessary impetus is given and adequate knowledge and technological expertise provided, the statement said. The major coir producing countries are India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, while the Philippines, Vietnam and several South American and African countries have entered the fray looking towards further expansion. Only an estimated 10 percent of the husks from global coconut production are used for fibre extraction, producing about 480,000 tonnes of coir annually. Around 100,000 tonnes of this enters world trade, the balance being consumed locally in coir producing countries. While fibre demand in importing countries has declined due to inconsistency in quality and delivery, the global coir trade decreased from 160,000 tonnes two decades ago to 123,000 tonnes. SriLankan
hires MTI for global training "The scope of the project, which blends consulting with training is truly global and the learning will be tremendous," said MTI CEO, Hilmy Cader. In the next three months, MTI will be involved with SriLankan operations in Switzerland, France, Malaysia and Thailand. SLECIC
to the rescue The parties had been doing business without any default for years. Though the sum involved was negligible in terms of the exporter's turnover and financial resources, the exporter had insured the risk under an open cover with Sri Lanka Export Credit Insurance Corporation (SLECIC) due to their prudence and good commercial practice. When the default of the buyer was confirmed and no recovery was considered possible, a claim for 80 percent of the value was honoured by SLECIC. Similarly, a large and well-known local manufacturer of floor tiles had to face a loss of Rs. 728, 000 on a shipment to South Africa made in July 2001. Once again it was found that the buyer was unable to meet their financial commitments and the exporter turned to SLECIC under the policy. These are instances of how the security that SLECIC provides through a package of insurance services to exporters can protect them from serious financial loss, a SLECIC statement said. Buyers are not always reliable and in times of economic downturn or political instability, the possibility of default is very real. It was primarily with a view to protecting exporters against the failure of overseas buyers that SLECIC was set up by the government almost 25 years ago, the statement said. SLECIC is a statutory corporation with a sound fund base and is backed by a government guarantee. It provides not only indemnities against financial default or insolvency by buyers, but also protection against political risk in the country of destination. SLECIC offers a wide range of products (services) at very low rates of premium through the banking system to exporters. The aim is to cushion them against unforeseeable financial loss. Whereas general insurance policies (marine or aviation) take care of the "perils of the seas" or air, which comprehends loss of or damage to goods due to known causes; the indemnity provided by SLECIC is against the financial delinquency or complete failure of drawees to pay under their commercial contracts. New
laws to fight computer criaame It also intends to enhance existing laws on intellectual property to protect intellectual creativity by mid-2003, a ministry statement said. The ministry said it also plans to enact laws to facilitate all forms of electronic commercial transactions this year and introduce voluntary guidelines to fulfil the requirements imposed by the European community data protection directive by mid-2003. Fiscal and other targeted incentives for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) development would be introduced as part of a broader programme to establish an economic environment conducive to ICT development, it said. The government is also drawing up a national policy on ICT and plans to elevate big ICT infrastructure projects to the status of 'Large Scale Infrastructure Projects' on par with roads, highways and air/sea ports, the statement said. It wants to make ICT-related facilities and services available at the grassroots level in addition to providing internationally competitive infrastructure to attract investment in knowledge based industries. The ministry has organised a "Consultation Meeting" on the proposed ICT policy that would be open to the public on June 13 at the JAIC Hilton at which the World Bank Mission and the ministers of Economic Reform, Science and Technology and Mass Communication will take part. Flagship infrastructure
projects being considered include a Multi-Media Distance Learning
Network aimed at broadbasing university and tertiary education,
a Multi-Media University, and the creation of a network of Internet
centres across the island. |
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