One-stop-shops to register and provide services for MSMES
Over 40 percent of Sri Lankan micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMES) are unregistered, making it more difficult to open bank accounts, to get loans, licences and permits for their enterprises. Women entrepreneurs face additional difficulties in all of these areas.
Now, with the support of the European Union (EU), registering a business in Sri Lanka is about to get easier. The Small and Medium Business and Enterprise Development Ministry has received the Cabinet approval to establish business services centres (one-stopshops) in the 25 districts to facilitate regulatory functions and business development.
Those business services centres will streamline the registration process and assist in access to technology, quality control and access to markets. They will have a web portal that will be linked to business development service providers, regulatory authorities, financial institutions and banks to serve the MSMES.
The service centres will be housed within and managed by the District Secretariat of each district. Service providers at district level will work closely with the respective centres to provide their services as required.
Chrysalis, British Council and CARE Germany together with the EU worked closely with the officials of the former Industries and Commerce Ministry to conceptualise and set up the business service centres. As a first step, four business service centres will be set up in the Matale, Nuwara Eliya, Badulla and Monaragala districts.
“There are many entrepreneurs in our district with various constraints holding them back from development. I firmly believe that through this business service centre we will be able to fill the gaps and bring these entrepreneurs to the required level and bring the products and services of this district to an international level,” Monaragala Additional Government Agent Chandana Lokuhewage.
Ambassador of the European Union to Sri Lankan and the Maldives Denis Chaibi said, “I am delighted to see that our support to the project in the Uva and Central provinces will be replicated in all districts and that it will become easier for all those that want to start a business, to get registered and to get support from the local business services providers in a one-stop solution.”