The Hon. Ravi Karunanayake

¶ 01 Hon. Chairman, I am happy to speak while you are presiding.

¶ 02 I rise on the Votes of two futuristic Ministries that can propel a rapid recovery after the traumatic period Sri Lanka faced. Let me illustrate how disconnected we are from the world. The US spends USD 811 billion on defence; China, USD 298 billion; India, USD 81 billion; and the rest among Saudi Arabia, Russia, the UK, Germany, France, Japan and South Korea, totalling USD 1,625 billion. I cite this to show global military spend while we struggle to secure just USD 16 million to stay afloat.

¶ 03 For the Ministry of Digital Economy, Rs. 13.58 billion is allocated: Rs. 7.58 billion recurrent and Rs. 6 billion capital. For Science and Technology: Rs. 5.8 billion – Rs. 2.88 billion recurrent and Rs. 2.28 billion capital. Out of the projected Rs. 8.7 trillion expenditure, only a minuscule fraction goes to research and digitalization. Why spend on harmful areas globally when most countries face similar predicaments? The world is becoming tech-heavy: AI, Grok 3—name it, they have it. My tech knowledge may not match that of the Ministers, but with my financial background, I wish to ensure we use technology to improve lives, security and quality time. Technology should serve human advancement; it cannot replace the human element.

¶ 04 We must fully exempt from tax expenditures on the digital economy and on science and technology—R&D, software, royalties, capital hardware, labour costs, etc. The IMF prescription is not a panacea. When I was Finance Minister, we offered 200–300 percent tax deductions on qualifying expenditures to spur R&D. Successful nations allocate 3–5 percent of GDP to R&D—Korea, the USA, India, the UK, Singapore. Even if only 60 percent is effective, that investment is necessary.

¶ 05 Have we achieved economic independence after 77 years? We missed many opportunities: the 1956 Sinhala-only policy isolated us linguistically; in 1977 we opened up but distorted the path. “Digitization” is loosely used; do we have the competence and sincerity to catch up? Allocating only 0.01 percent of the Budget is not walking the talk.

¶ 06 Why digitize? To build national digital infrastructure: high-speed internet, 5G, national data centres, cloud adoption; to shape mindsets attuned to change; to adopt e-governance and a digital public service. India’s Aadhaar transformed it. In 2015, under PM Ranil Wickremesinghe and President Maithripala Sirisena, we tried to introduce a unique ID but faced bureaucratic resistance. This Government must “put money where the mouth is” and implement the Unique ID. It will ensure social security targeting—today, “Aswesuma” reaches 2.3 million families while many eligible miss out and ineligible receive it. Digitization will reduce inefficiency and corruption.

¶ 07 We have discussed a paperless government for 15 years; implement it now. Use blockchain for secure, transparent document management. On AI: take advantage. Look at the United States—post 21st January, with a Department of Government Efficiency under Elon Musk, they aim to cut USD 2 trillion by pruning irrelevant costs and redeploying funds efficiently. Our Capital Expenditure is only Rs. 1.3 trillion and we have already lost three months; accelerate implementation.

¶ 08 A connected digital government should have been done yesterday. In exports, ASYCUDA can unify Customs, Department of Commerce (Certificates of Origin), and banks. Cut red tape; bureaucracy needs political leadership to move decisively without fear of post-facto harassment.

¶ 09 During COVID-19, essential systems functioned while the country was closed, proving technology’s role. Virtual platforms like Zoom now shrink distances; even President Anura Dissanayake meets the IMF MD virtually—reducing costs and increasing efficiency.

¶ 10 At the CEB, 29,000 employees and 3,900 meter readers remain while smart metering could eliminate tampering, provide real-time billing, cut costs and increase efficiency tenfold. Fear of strikes stalled digitization. On expressways, ticketing remains manual, with ETC only on Colombo–Katunayake. Digitize to boost revenue and redeploy staff to productive roles. When counters struck, Army operation increased revenue by 30 percent—evidence of distortion. With 1.6 million public servants—among the highest per capita—use them better rather than resisting reform.