Sri Lanka's public investments are on the rise as government builds new infrastructure for a post-war revival, laying the foundation for more private investment, Treasury Secretary, P B Jayasundera said.
The end of the 30-year ethnic war last May has created the political stability needed to accelerate economic growth, he said at a logistics quiz of Sri Lanka Shippers' Council.
"The government has boldly moved on without waiting for everything to happen through market forces and the private sector," Jayasundera said.
The Treasury Secretary said the government is active in building ports, electricity generation and transmission lines, irrigation facilities, and road and rail networks to create the required infrastructure for growth."
"The government has moved from 3.5 - 4 percent of national income as public investment to over six percent now and hopefully over the next five years 6.5 - 7 percent," he said.
"The reason for this level of investment is not that the government is going to do everything but it is laying the foundation to get five times the investment made by government from the private sector.
"Then the total investment of this nation will exceed 35 percent which is what is required to maintain fairly buoyant, sustainable, vibrant economic growth," Jayasundera said.
"Now we have around 25 percent of total investment," he added.
The government aims to make the island a shipping, aviation, energy and knowledge hub, Jayasundera said.
More skilled people would be required by the time the port completes building a new port next to Colombo harbour, on which construction is underway, he said.
The new port and reclaimed land will create a new 'port city', he added.
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