CLASSIFIED | POLITICS | TERRORISM | OPINION | VIEWS

Migration of Professionals

ASOKA S.

I want to commend Dilrook Kannangara for a very nicely written article on this subject. I fully endorse the views about professionals leaving for greener pastures to try and reap ones full potential.

I also would like to take this subject a bit further. Thanks to a healthy capitalist economic structure, capital markets and open global trade, many of the hitherto poorer countries are turning into economic giants. Companies from India for examples are even investing in the so called rich countries. Recently Indian computer giant Satyam Computers invested in Australia to tap the rich Australian market. Indian born Lakshmi Mittal is taking over the worlds lucrative steel industry. Still poor Sri Lanka, having being subject to a nasty socialist experiment from 1970 to 77, is still struggling to join the band wagon to prosperity like India, China, Thailand, Malaysia and to that matter even Vietnam. Recently IBM committed to invest 3 billion US$ in Vietnam. These investments have huge snowballing effects to Vietnam's future.

Think of a potential blue chip company like IBM wanting to pump several million dollars in Lanka. Any executive landing in Colombo is very likely to face many negatives. Meaningless permit processes, unopened bureaucratic doors, traffic chaos, exchange and profit repatriation issues, falling apart infrastructure, political interference into the commerce and the all important 10 percent factor. Yes, war is indeed an issue but there are many countries in the world with wars but big companies still invested nevertheless.

Once I was directly involved in an investment process by a very reputed million dollars company off London. The then FIAC was totally useless. Even to get an appointment to see one of those high profile officials was next to impossible. After several attempts we managed to meet one of these highly paid officials who did not offer one ounce of encouragement for the planned investment. Later on we found out he was in the pockets of a major competitor. So GOSL was paying him big money to help attract investors while on the other hand the same person is being bribed into doing just the opposite.

With the advice of a European businessman in Lanka we were channeled through a paid consultancy company in Colombo who obtained the FIAC approval for us in about 3 weeks to be met by the above official to be congratulated on getting the approval. We could not believe that we were talking to the same person.
He even told us that according to the Confederation of British Industry records our principal in London was very high profile and he was very impressed.
Upon the receiving the approval documents and the attached conditions the chairman of the British Company threw them into the trash bin because the conditions were so stringent. He found them to be very amusing. He felt the Lankan government should embrace his several million dollars investment not throw a 101 conditions as if there is no other place to invest his money.

So in essence what will help Sri Lanka is for our government to get our house in order. Ministers should be geared, trained and the mindset attuned to attract business aggressively. Useless ministries should be flushed down the toilet and that will rid us of about 75% of the associated dead wood and the curse that come with it. For God sake we can equip our schools with much needed computers with the money thus saved or build another hospital. The remaining ministers should treat their ministries like that of a CEO of a company; deliver or be fired.

The only way Lankan brains will remain in Lanka is by providing them with economic opportunity. Or else USA or Canada or Australia will reap the benefit of our trained professional to increase the bottom line of their companies. Politicians in Lanka should stop behaving like rabid dogs in the Parliament washing each others dirty linen, but get down to the essential business of the Lankan people; give them a fair chance to be fed, clothed, housed and bring up their families in dignity. That is not asking for too much I hope.

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