UN backed SL industry diagnostic initiative rolled-out in Colombo

From Left: UNIDO Representative, Regional Office, India Rene Van Berkel, Chief, Regional Division of Asia Pacific-UNIDO Vienna International Centre Ralf Bredel,  Secretary to Ministry of Industry and Supply Chain Management J. R. Ranjith, UN Resident Coordinator Sri Lanka Hanaa Singer, and UNIDO Focal Point Sri Lanka National Director Nawaz Rajabdeen

• SL UN Resident Coordinator & High level UNIDO team launch SL industry consultations 
• ‘Moving SL from ‘Industry 2.0’ to ‘Industry 4.0’ – UNIDO Vienna’s Bredel
• Bredel impressed by Sri Lanka industry’s feedback
• ‘Very urgent need‘- SL UN Resident Coordinator 

A high level team from the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), Vienna joined by no less than the UN Resident Coordinator Sri Lanka launched the next phase of Sri Lanka industry revolution in Colombo yesterday. 

UNIDO said that it is impressed by the feedback received by Sri Lankan industries for its latest initiative in Colombo. 

“Sri Lanka’s industry sector contributes 27 percent to its GDP. The government’s objective is to move the economy from an economy intensively based on resources to an economy based on knowledge-based industries- moving Sri Lanka from ‘Industry 2.0’ and 3.0 to ‘Industry 4.0’ said Vienna based Chief of Regional Division of Asia Pacific UNIDO International Centre, Ralf Bredel in Colombo. 

Bredel was addressing the launch event of the new UNIDO Sri Lanka Country Programme 2020-2024 (UNIDOSLCP) themed ‘Towards Inclusive and Sustainable Industrialisation in Sri Lanka’ at Kingsbury, Colombo. 

Joining Bredel at the event were United Nations Resident Coordinator Sri Lanka Hanaa Singer, Sri Lanka UNIDO Focal Point National Director Nawaz Rajabdeen, UNIDO Representative, Regional Office-India Rene Van Berkel, Senior Research and Industrial Policy Officer-UNIDO Vienna International Centre Dr Anders Isaksson, Secretary to Ministry of Industry and Supply Chain Management J. R. Ranjith, and 30 representatives from the business sector, UN and EU agencies, government institutions, chambers and industry representatives. 

“The objective of UNIDO’s new country programme is to see how we can support these endeavours. The ambition is to go beyond just the number of isolated standalone projects to follow a programmatic approach which is also able to make an impact in industrial policy level.  “The ambition is to manage expectations very carefully, and Sri Lanka government wants to make sure that there’s clear ownership on all sides. So we’ve had a number of bilateral discussions with many of the government departments and also with development partners in the last two days and we are very impressed by the feedback that we received, which will be informing our country programme,” Bredel added.

“Shaping Sri Lanka’s new industrial policy based on the requests and requirements of local industries, adopting green concepts and industrial safety are the pillars of new UNIDOSLCP 20-’24,” said UNIDO Representative, Regional Office-India Rene Van Berkel and added: “This is a major support intervention for Sri Lankan industry sector since the last Country Programme successfully closed in 2015. The new program is the first such programme for Sri Lanka that involves inclusive and sustainable industrial development.” After comprehensive kick-off presentations made by UNIDO’s Dr. Anders Isaksson (Senior Research and Industrial Policy Officer-UNIDO Vienna International Centre) to the audience, many stakeholders joining the event yesterday gave in-depth feedback on the UNIDOSLCP’s way forward.