ADB, Korean consultants study Trinco economic corridor

The Export-Import Bank of Korea together with the Asian Development Bank held a seminar on the Colombo-Trincomalee Economic Corridor (CTEC) recently with the aim of sharing the final policy consultation paper with the Sri Lankan government.

Officials from the Ministry of National Policies and Economic Affairs, Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade and Sri Lanka Customs among other organizations were present.

ADB-Knowledge Sharing Program (KSP) joint consulting program was launched in April this year to support the Sri Lankan Government in drawing a blueprint for the corridor.

The KSP is a special technical assistance program provided by the Korea Eximbank under its Ministry of Strategy and Finance to share Korea’s development experience and knowledge accumulated over the past decades with partner countries.

KSP offers Joint Consulting Programs with Multilateral Development Banks, Modularization Projects, and Policy Consultation tailored to the needs of partner countries encompassing in-depth analysis, policy recommendations, and training opportunities.

“Even though Sri Lanka is just below the threshold of upper-middle income country status, there are challenges that it needs to overcome,” a statement said.

“Low foreign direct investment (FDI) inflow compared with those in other countries like Viet Nam and Myanmar, a non-vibrant SME sector, an inadequate custom system and risks arising from unplanned urbanization are some of the challenges. These factors contributed to a decline in the export to GDP ratio from 29% in 2000 to 12.5% in 2016.”

The ADB-KSP program aims to make practical contributions to the CTEC initiative to create an export-oriented economy.

This joint consulting offers comprehensive policy recommendations tailored to the needs of Sri Lanka, especially focusing on four areas – FDI promotion, strengthening the competitiveness of SMEs, single window custom system and urbanization.

Korea Eximbank may finance development projects related to these 4 areas and other economic infrastructures in Sri Lanka.