President Anura Kumara Dissanayake says Sri Lanka must attract more foreign direct investments (FDI) to strengthen the country’s economy and withstand potential external economic shocks.

The President stated that emerging regional crises could create pressure on the country’s dollar reserves, stressing the need for a proper economic strategy to address such risks.

He pointed out that attracting foreign direct investment is essential for economic stability and noted that the government is currently focused on removing barriers that hinder investments.

President Dissanayake made these remarks while attending the commencement ceremony of construction of the second phase of Section 3 of the Central Expressway, from Rambukkana to Galagedara, this afternoon (29).

Addressing the gathering, the President said plans are underway to swiftly pass an Investment Protection Act in Parliament to safeguard investors. He also noted that nearly 25% of Sri Lanka’s exports are currently dependent on the United States, highlighting the importance of diversifying exports across a wider range of countries and products.

“There is a risk of a dollar crisis emerging, and we need a proper plan to address it. We must focus on several strategies, one of which is attracting foreign direct investments. However, there are significant obstacles to achieving this. One major issue is the weaknesses within our own state institutions. We are aware of the difficulties faced by certain projects, and in some cases, even the land release mechanism has become a barrier.

“Therefore, we urge everyone to support the need for foreign direct investments. We are already paying attention to removing the obstacles that hinder such investments. We are also planning to swiftly pass an Investment Protection Act in Parliament to safeguard investors. 

“In addition, we expect to establish a ‘single-window’ system that will allow investors to complete all their activities through one platform. Our goal is to build an economy capable of withstanding crises that may arise in other regions through strong direct foreign investments,” the President said.

He further emphasized the need to strengthen exports and support import substitution industries.

“Secondly, we need to encourage and strengthen our exports. Around 25% of our exports are currently dependent on the United States. Therefore, we must diversify our exports by expanding into a greater number of countries. We also need to diversify the range of products we export.

“Accordingly, we must focus on increasing the export sector while also promoting import substitution industries,” he added.