Vijay Raghavan
COO – Sri Lanka

Rich in natural, agricultural and human resources, Sri Lanka is one of South Asia’s most low-risk emerging economies that is poised to become a globally competitive market. Over the past few years, the island nation has demonstrated immense potential towards leapfrogging technology and adopting 4IR (4th Industrial Revolution). The Sri Lankan government’s commitment to convert the country into a tech-driven hub was pronounced in its Budget 2021, where a slew of reforms in trade policies and initiatives such as ‘Invest Sri Lanka-2021’ were made to improve the ease of doing business and attract more foreign direct investments. Additionally, Sri Lanka also identified ‘Building a Technology-based society’ as a key national initiative in its National Policy Framework (NPF) in 2019. This policy aims to maximise the use of innovative technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Biotechnology, Robotics, Augmented Reality, Cloud Computing, Nanotechnology and 3D printing across its industries. The country is further bolstered by its ICT (Information and Communications Technology) industry that is projected to generate USD 1.8 billion revenue by the end of this year. Sri Lanka thus stands firmly on the precipice of becoming the new regional hub for both knowledge and employment, and this will attract businesses from across the neighbouring region to enter and thrive in its conducive market.