National Enterprise Development Authority (NEDA) which plays a vital role as a facilitator to create an entrepreneurship culture in Sri Lanka launched a new database, called NEDA-Enterprise Management System (NEDA EMS), to promote local SMEs to international market.
Under this project, NEDA will execute a nationwide centralised digital databank of all small businesses, SMEs and entrepreneurs thereby boosting the performance of this critical economic sector significantly.
As the first stage of the project, NEDA will gather data from 150,000 entrepreneurs and SMEs active with it .In later stages, the EMS will cover the more than one million Micro Small and Medium Enterprises eco system in the country.
NEDA enacts national policy framework for regional enterprise development activities. The main objective of NEDA is to stimulate the growth and development of Sri Lanka by encouraging, promoting and facilitating small and medium sector enterprises.
“The project is backed by a Singaporean firm’s generous grant of powerful database software. This initiative is also in keeping with similar upcoming digital databases in the South Asian region. Therefore today’s effort brings our SME sector in par with South Asia’s SME digitalization efforts,” Industry and Commerce, Resettlement of Protracted Displaced Persons and Cooperative Development Minister Rishad Bathiudeen said in Colombo.
“NEDA’s overall aim is to bring the Sri Lankan micro small and medium entrepreneurs and their enterprises to a centralized digital platform,” Minister said adding that “This Info-comm digital platform will result in the first such digital database for SME and entrepreneurship sectors of Sri Lanka.”
Bathiudeen further said that NEDA is equipping its field development officers with 250 Tablet PCs to be used as data collection terminals to upload captured entrepreneur data in real-time.
NEDA Chairman Dakshitha Bogollagma speaking at the event said, NEDA’s SME Policy aims to create a significant number of technologically driven sustainable SMEs. The policy framework identifies special technology transfer to promote the adoption of modern technology by SMEs and dissemination of information on technology resources as a challenge faced by local SMEs.
“This is a very slow process and time consuming. Time has come to change it. The paper based recordings at NEDA are difficult to update continuously. Such old information are not presentable to any investor nor a buyer. This new system will help NEDA administration since our own employees’ KPIs can be measured by this system.” Bogollagma said.
He also added that SMEs to progress, their technology adoption too should be increased.
Trina Savage, CEO of Singapore’s RES Group, speaking at the event stressed that Sri Lankan SMEs need to move with latest technology changes to be on par with other regional competitors.
0 comments: