Open Economy and Foreign inward investments
Posted on July 11th, 2019
Dr Sarath Obeysekera
We have approached the banks to provide financial facilities to develop a Residential high rise under Non BoI category as converting into BOI is not a viable option due to the fact that duty free facilities and other perks are not available for condominium development.
Investors in Europe are willing to send legitimate funds thru a European source .All the banks demand so many documents to prove source funds and names of investors and proof of address in the country or residence,
All above can be provided ,but they have to go to an Embassy in Sri Lanka ,stand on the queue to get the passports authenticated.
This whole process can take weeks or even months.
If and when they are allowed to open an account called IIA ( inward investment account)which replaces all other account types which were permitted earlier to transfer capital or profit back to any country or any other account of their relatives or a company of their choice .
Under new rules only account holder can receive funds back and he is not allowed to send anywhere else.
Share market is so bad and no investor is willing to buy shares.
The money invested in blue chip companies in shares are quite often transferred out of the country by individuals,hence there is no net returns remaining in the country
Investors cannot invest in any other Non Boi project,because land ownership is not permitted for foreigners.
Dubai,Malasia and some other countries relax the rules with cateful monitoring of Noney Laudering ,but once the country is confident about source of funds,they allow them to do any local bunissess
Is is high time the government change rules during these difficult times to attract FDI via non Boi investments.
Dr Sarath Obeysekera
July 11th, 2019 at 7:11 pm
In the past, SIA accounts were available to expatriate Sri Lankan citizens for FINANCIAL SECURITY and IMMOVABLE (eg. land) investments. These accounts permit repatriation of funds abroad. I didn’t know about the new IIA type accounts mentioned in this article.
I am totally AGAINST land ownership by Foreiners NO MATTER HOW SWEETY THE DEAL seems to be, because finally it ends up DISPOSESSING Sri Lankan citizens.
IN ANY DEAL, Sri Lankan citi8zens must be significant partners, and CITIZENS MUST BE THE SOLE OWNERS of the TITLE to the LAND, and the TRANSFER of OWNERSHIP of the LAND to NON-CITIZENS must be COMPLETELY FORBIDDEN!
A COROLLARY to this requirement should be A LAW that COMPLETELY FORBIDS the AWARD OF CITIZENSHIP to non-citizens. Limited Exclusions to this RULE can be made for former citizens of Sri Lanka to RECOVER Sri Lankan citizenship, on a CASE BY CASE BASIS as under the previous Mahinda Rajapaksa government.
Sri L:anka is one of the MOST DENSELY POPULATED countries in the world, and buildable and farmable land is growing increasingly scarce. Sri Lanka MUST COMMITT ITSELF to PROTECTING and CONSERVING its land resources for USE BY FUTURE GENERATIONS of its citizens.
Given that our citizens are POOR, and CITIZENSHIP and their VOTE as citizens is the only means they have to protect the FUTURE of their descendents, the current leaders must act responsibly not to put short term money and wealthy before long term considerations like the survival of our people and their descendents.
Some may say that this condemns Sri Lanka to poverty. Not so, there are other SMART ways to attract FOREIGN MONEY for INVESTMENT without dispossessing our most VULNERABLE HELPLESS PEOPLE of ther INHERITANCE in their Motherland.
It is for us who understand these long term issues to think on behalf of our vulnerable people and protect them from the DIRE LONG -TERM CONSEQUENCES of UNPATRIOTIC LEADERS focused only on FEATHERING their own nests in the short term.
Hawaii is a very good example of a once independent and proud nation that was conned into a day dream to give its sovereignty and ownership of the land. The Missionary Families that married into the Hawaiin royalty were the means by which Americans from Continental USA grabbed the country and its land. Today, NONE of the GLITTERING edifices that adorn the Hawaiian archipelago are owned by, or benefit, the Haiian people. Hawaiians live today in hovels in the backwoods of the islands, only to be trotted out as dancers and entainers to the beat of Hula music.
The FATE OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS will be the FATE OF SRI LANKA if we STUPIDLY listen to the SIREN SONGS of Foreigners amd their CAPTIVE POODLES within Sri Lanka and its current Government.
We Sri Lankans should follow the EXAMPLE OF JAPAN that does an amazing job of balancing high finance and high technology, and PRESERVING its ancient culture without allowing their motherland to be captured by foreigners. That drive to PRESERVE the BEST in Japan’s own culture while EXCLUDING the WORST of Foreign Cultures began during the Shogun period when Japan expelled Europeans (principally the Portuguese and their Catholic religion which became a powerful political threat to Japan) and the period following the RESTORATION of the Emperor’s rule following the arrival of Commodore Perry’s fleet in Tokyo harbor. Japan realized it had to INDUSTRIALIZE FAST to stop Western threats, and its patriotic leaders accomplished that it under 20 years. Shortly thereafter, Japan STUNNED the West by DESTROYING the famed Russian Fleet in the Shushima Straits thereby declaring to the world that this Asian nation, through its own efforts without accepting enslavement by the West, had arrived on the scene as a Global Power to be reckoned with.
The commitment of the Japanese to PRESERVE their ownership of their lands, and their exquisite unique culture, has not changed to this day.
We Sri Lankans CAN & MUST DO THE SAME as Japan did and does to this day, without abjectly accepting enslavement to foreign cultures and foreign powers in the name of short-term profit, and a flawed notion that the West is culturally superior to us!