Harvard University's ‘CID’ to diagnose Sri Lanka’s economic growth ills
The deeply-indebted Sri Lankan government has been forced to seek foreign expertise to identify the most binding constraints that hamper economic growth at this specific point of time as it is necessary for the implementation of the 4-year economic development plan which is to be unveiled soon.
In this backdrop, US based Harvard University's Center for International Development (CID) has stepped in to carry out Sri Lanka’s economic growth diagnostic and complexity research with financial assistance of billionaire investor and philanthropist George Soros and the Open Society Foundation, informed sources revealed.
Mr. Soros along with the Open Society Foundation is expected to pump in several millions of dollars in tranches for Sri Lanka’s growth diagnostic and complexity research as well as towards the implementation of the economic development plan, a senior official of the Finance Ministry speaking on condition of anonymity told the Business Times adding that this deal is yet to finalised and there was no agreement reached as yet with the government.
The country needs to be cautious of economic reforms being implemented before the economic development plan, economic experts said.
Aiming at higher-order principles of neoclassical economics, growth diagnostic - a strategy for figuring out the policy priorities - allows policymakers to creatively develop policy designs which addressing the most binding constraint while taking into account relevant factors of their country’s economic, political and social context.
Renowned Economist Dr. Sirimal Abeyratne who declined to comment on Harvard University's initiative told the Business Times, that Sri Lanka has lost many opportunities in developing the economy and even the present government has not made any attempt towards this end after coming into power almost one and half years ago.
He said that this government came to power putting forward their economic development plan and it has failed to implement it so far.