Indian credit-line to set up 14,000 home shops favouring SLPP supporters

The Government is using the recent US$1 billion credit-line from India to set up 14,000 home shops run by female entrepreneurs country-wide while conceding that the move is aimed to solely benefit supporters of the ruling party.

These home shops will fulfill the needs of food items and non food products, such as clothing and household items because villagers in rural areas had to travel to nearby towns located very far from their villages to buy their requirements from city groceries.

Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa had earlier decided to provide a sum of Rs. 800,000 per family to open a home shop each in their villages but it has now been pruned down to Rs. 300,000 due to the financial crisis of the Treasury, Ministry sources said. A sum of Rs. 15 billion has been allocated for this project.

The main aim of this home shop initiative is to further improve women empowerment and to form a women entrepreneur network in rural areas countrywide.

But the hidden agenda is to indirectly influence villagers to gain their support for the ruling party in the event of local government or provincial council elections, analysts said.

The Finance Minister recently stated that the local government election or provincial council elections will be held soon, noting that the Government has no fear to hold another election.

“One woman entrepreneur in one village will be promoted through supporting, to supply the entrepreneurship guidance and the initial capital identifying the women entrepreneurship in rural family units,” Trade Minister Bandula Gunawardena told the Business Times.