🏛️ Govt. to Establish High-Powered Business Facilitation Centre to Cut Investment Red Tape

• Overview: The Cabinet of Ministers approved a proposal by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to set up a National Business Facilitation Centre under the Presidential Secretariat to streamline Sri Lanka's fragmented investment approval process. • Core Objective: The Centre aims to act as a single high-powered coordinating mechanism to eliminate administrative barriers, resolve delays, and improve industrial sector policymaking. • Role & BOI: Clarified that the Centre will not replace the Board of Investment (BOI). Instead, it will strengthen inter-agency coordination to help investors navigate State bureaucracy. • Key Challenges Addressed: Resolves longstanding delays in securing land, environmental clearances, regulatory licenses, utility connections (electricity/water), and banking facilities that hinder domestic and foreign projects. • Operations & Staffing: Designed to avoid extra bureaucracy, the Centre will be granted authority to resolve bottlenecks and will recruit private sector specialists, experienced public officials, and professionals on a contractual basis. • National Impact: Expected to improve Sri Lanka's overall investment climate, encouraging entrepreneurship, accelerating project commencement, and boosting employment across key industries.