SL’s population under poverty level could increase based on daily spend

While the absolute poverty level in Sri Lanka today is at a low 3.8 per cent of the population with a US$ 1.30 spend per day, if this goes up to $2.5, then a quarter of the country’s population will be considered poor, says Indrajit Coomaraswamy, Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka.

Attending the ‘Youth to Nation Foundation’ event organised by the Carson Cumberbatch group at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute in Colombo last week, Dr. Coomaraswamy said that entre- preneurship will be critical to transform the livelihoods of the rural population, where many of them are trapped in low productivity and low income levels.

“The absolute poverty in Sri Lanka is very low at 3.8 per cent of the population based on $ 1.30 spending per day. But if we increase the poverty line to $2.50, more than a quarter of the country’s population will be below the poverty level in this country. While we get people out of absolute poverty there is a very large proportion who are living rather an economically insecure life,” he said.

He also mentioned that 27 per cent of Sri Lanka’s population is involved in agriculture which contributes only 7 per cent to the GDP which should only involve 15 per cent of the populat i o n . Agriculture needs transformation with modern cultivation practices. Low productivity and low income is attained when 35-40 per cent of the produce is lost at the post-harvest level. No proper storage, refrigeration and transport are some of the concerns.

Dr. Coomaraswamy reiterated that the future of this country is in the hands of the young generation. “I personally feel that young people in this country seem to have the energy and commitment to move in the right direction. Programmes like ‘Youth to Nation Foundation’ must provide them the support framework to get the foothold and start moving forward.”

Access to market is the biggest challenge among rural entrepreneurs, Dr. Coomaraswamy noted. Institutions must help them link to supply chains and open the marketing channels, he added.

Netherlands Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Joanne Doornewaard stated that entrepreneurs are the drivers of economic growth and innovation. “When you talk about economic development you have to think about sustainability and include the poor,” she noted.