President pledges digital transformation for poverty reduction and educational reform

President Ranil Wickremesinghe highlighted Sri Lanka’s commitment to agricultural modernisation and emphasised the nation’s goal of reducing multi-dimensional poverty.

By 2035, Sri Lanka aims to ensure that multi-dimensional poverty does not exceed 10 percent. While achieving zero poverty is unprecedented, the President acknowledged that even leading countries typically operate with a poverty rate around 7 percent.

President Wickremesinghe made these remarks while delivering the keynote speech at the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) Seminar yesterday (26), at the Taj Samudra Hotel, Colombo, emphasising the timeliness of the seminar amid Sri Lanka’s shift beyond economic stabilisation.

Highlighting the achievement of stabilising the economy and ongoing negotiations with international creditors, President Wickremesinghe outlined the Government’s economic transformation agenda.

This seminar on Digital Public Infrastructure co-organised by the Indian High Commission in Colombo and Sri Lanka’s Technology Ministry to explore the transformative potential of DPI for enabling service delivery, empowering communities by fostering inclusivity and enriching the economy by driving innovation.

President Wickremesinghe also expressed his intention to present the legislation to Parliament by the middle of this year, at the latest, to enable the functioning of the proposed agency. He emphasised that this legislative and policy framework is crucial for Sri Lanka to become a competitive economy, especially as the Indian Ocean region emerges as a key growth area.

The President characterised Sri Lanka’s economy as a “patchwork economy,” describing it as a collection of disparate elements stitched together. He emphasized the need to transition towards a more cohesive digital economy.

Acknowledging the importance of digitalization, President Wickremesinghe highlighted the significance of discussions on the digital public economy. He outlined plans to establish a new institutional framework to facilitate this transition, moving away from existing structures like IT councils and focusing on creating a Digital Transformation Agency and an AI centre, allocated with a budget of LKR 01 billion. This agency would be dedicated to building a robust digital economy, departing from previous approaches that failed to yield desired outcomes.

The President stressed the importance of reinforcing the education system, both at the school and higher education levels, to support this initiative. One of the key decisions is to introduce Artificial Intelligence (AI) into schools within the next five years, with the goal of integrating it into every school within five to eight years, extending to universities as well.

President Wickremesinghe expressed gratitude to the Indian government for their support, in advancing Sri Lanka’s digital economy, highlighting plans to collaborate with Indian institutions and leverage their expertise, particularly in establishing a campus of the Chennai Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) and additionally planning to launch three universities, two of which will focus on technology.

The President concluded by expressing optimism that the discussions at the workshop would contribute significantly to the nation’s development plans and programmes.

Meanwhile, speaking at the event, State Minister of Technology Kanaka Herath outlined Sri Lanka’s commitment to operationalising the DIGIECON 2030 roadmap, focusing on upgrading networks and promoting Digital Financial Services (DFS) for financial inclusion.

He further said the Government aims to implement DPI across all levels to foster a connected digital government and address challenges like cyber-security.

Moreover, the State Minister announced plans for a global investment summit on June 25, offering a platform for tech VCs. He urged investors to embrace change and contribute to the country’s digital evolution to explore investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s burgeoning tech ecosystem.

Present at the event were Foreign Minister Ali Sabry, Ports, Shipping, and Aviation Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva, State Minister of Technology Kanaka Herath, Indian High Commissioner Santosh Jha and Parliamentarians Harsha De Silva, Kavinda Jayawardena, Mayantha Dissanayake, Charitha Herath, and Mohamed Muzammil. Also in attendance were Secretary to the Ministry of Technology Dr. Dharmasiri Kumaratunge and notable stakeholders from India and Sri Lanka.

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