Sri Lanka had some of the world’s brightest mobile app developers: UK entrepreneur

As smart phone penetration increases in Sri Lanka, so too will mobile application (app) development, with this market growing "exponentially" over the next three years, according to Keith De Alwis, the Co-Founder and Managing Director of UK-based Creative Applications, a mobile app developer which will be moving all of its technical operations locally by next year. The global mobile application industry was valued at US$ 6.8 billion in 2010, with expectations it will grow to $25 billion by 2015, a 367 per cent increase in just five years.

Commenting on the Sri Lankan market, Mr. De Alwis told the Business Times that, after searching many other countries, he had found that Sri Lanka had some of the world’s brightest mobile app developers. And he further indicated that Sri Lanka would be a future global hub for this technology, with low operating expenditure and favourable foreign investment laws making this country a natural choice.

Mr. De Alwis also revealed that the company he co-founded, an eightmonth old start-up that only recently secured private venture capital funding, would be adding as many as 100 new Sri Lanka-based jobs over the next three years. This would be in addition to its current 25 employees.

He also indicated that they were looking for experienced developers as well as recent graduates with mobile application experience. There would also be the need for skilled graphic de- signers and creative functions. Additionally, developers would be required to have Objective C, Java, Phone Gap and HTML 5 core competencies.

Meanwhile, Mr. De Alwis also signalled that, while Creative Application currently operated in Europe and North America, the company was also planning to set up sales hubs in Australia and the Middle East in the near future. Further, Sri Lanka as a marketfor customers was also a possibility and they were currently talking to companies locally.