The Hon. Amila Prasad

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Chairperson of Committees, we are debating imports and exports. The key difference between our party and the Samagi Jana Balawegaya and others is our view on trade. We believe in the market system; both the former UNP and the SJB have professed belief in markets. You cannot rebuild this country by fearing imports or banning them.

¶ 02 For decades, pseudo-nationalists have demonized trade and built myths about domestic industry in a small island economy. As a result, opportunities to improve people’s welfare were lost. Most under-50 Sri Lankans build their comfort through imported goods—fuel, food, medicines. The difference in imported consumption between rich and poor is small: when someone is ill, the medicine is imported; even gifts like oranges or apples are imported.

¶ 03 Pseudo-nationalists kept piling taxes on imports, leading to lower-quality goods reaching our people. In countries that believe in markets, imports are regulated by quality standards and enforcement, not blanket taxes—rejecting goods below mandated quality rather than blocking access through punitive duties.

¶ 04 Excessive import taxes also undermine exports. Our export sector relies on imported inputs. When fertilizers were restricted under Gotabaya Rajapaksa, agriculture collapsed. When imports are restricted, apparel suffers; inputs are imported and restrictions raise costs, hurting competitiveness. You cannot build an export economy by restricting imports.

¶ 05 Long-standing failures in export promotion stem from rising energy costs, land policy constraints, and rigid labour laws unfriendly to investors. Attempts to reform labour laws are blocked by leftist unions. Investors go to Bangladesh or Vietnam where labour frameworks are more accommodating. We lack even basic legal space for part-time work, limiting labour market participation to a narrow age band.

¶ 06 Land policy is in crisis; fears were stoked whenever reforms were proposed, claiming land would be handed to foreign countries, preventing needed reform and deterring investment. Energy is another bottleneck: high electricity tariffs deter investment and raise export costs. Unless we lower energy costs—by expanding wind and solar, especially in the North and East, and even becoming an energy exporter to India—we cannot attract investors or grow exports. Tea, coconut, and rubber alone cannot bring sufficient forex. Embrace the free market and reform; demonizing it has held us back for 30 years. The domestic economy alone cannot deliver development.