🇸🇪🇱🇰 Sweden-Sri Lanka Trade: Council Maps Member Priorities

The Sweden-Sri Lanka Business Council (SSLBC) released a dialogue study mapping key priorities and regulatory hurdles for its growing membership, which has expanded to nearly 100 businesses over the past three years. • Key Operational & Regulatory Priorities • Visas & Capital Flows: Members are calling for simplified visa procedures, predictable tax rules, smoother compliant capital flows, and clearer conditions for the repatriation of profits. • Legal & Data Compliance: The absence of a GDPR adequacy decision for Sri Lanka remains a structural challenge, introducing additional administrative burdens and operational costs. • Macroeconomic Guidance: Swedish businesses express strong interest in direct investment opportunities, specialized investment structures, and major national projects like the Port City Colombo. • Sector-Specific Insights • ICT/BPM & Tech: Industry members identify the ongoing national brain drain (loss of skilled human capital) as a critical threat to long-term development and operational sustainability. • Tourism: Active interest remains in sector development, with members seeking to promote Sri Lanka while addressing core infrastructural challenges in air connectivity, security, and sustainable tourism. • Business Support: Companies are requesting practical framework support, including guidance on local regulations, verified partners, and specialized corporate advisers. _Note: Findings are based on qualitative data from the SSLBC 2026 dialogue study to guide future bilateral trade boards in Stockholm and Colombo._