Lanka must commit to industrialization
Sunday 01 July 2012
This is the third in a series of five letters in this column outlining the barebones of social and political programme that I believe the left movement in Lanka must begin to prepare. There were two gatherings during the last 12 months where it was agreed that a programmatic document embodying the views of the left was necessary and drafting responsibilities were handed out; but there has been no output so far. The Frontline Socialist Party (new-JVP) was expected to issue a programme at its April 2012 inaugural convention but nothing so ambitious emerged. It is rumoured that the LSSP’s Left Tendency circulated a discusion document six months ago, but strangely it has remained under perpetual wraps.
It is to kick-starting a draft that I set out on this mission but without illusions that my thoughts are but a starting point for other more competent hands to take further. A fortnight ago I offered a piece on the prevailing political landscape and followed this up last week with a discussion of economic policy structure. Today’s letter is about industrialization, the next will deal with agriculture, services and foreign investment. The final instalment, a
fortnight from now, will examine issues pertaining to Constitution, state and the national question.
Creation of wealth
In modern times, neither the agricultural sector nor services are engines of added value or rapid development; this is true of large nations and small ones. This remark does not apply with equal force to countries at all stages of maturity, and agriculture (including fishing and animal husbandry) needs reinforcement in economically less advanced nations. It is also important to keep food security in mind. But agriculture is not the sector in which the largest long-term gains will be made. Also the older view that smaller countries are not suited for industrialization is incorrect; Taiwan is 55% the size of Lanka, has about the same population and is equally bereft of mineral wealth and gasoline. But it is an industrial powerhouse, a world leader in IT and electronics, and the world’s largest supplier of digital chips. South Korea is one and a half times our size and has double the population and is also resource poor, but it is the world’s seventh largest exporter and an even greater economic powerhouse than Taiwan (11-th largest economy in the world in PPP terms). Singapore is much smaller and with zero natural resources is an economic tiger.
Full Story>>>
Sunday 01 July 2012
This is the third in a series of five letters in this column outlining the barebones of social and political programme that I believe the left movement in Lanka must begin to prepare. There were two gatherings during the last 12 months where it was agreed that a programmatic document embodying the views of the left was necessary and drafting responsibilities were handed out; but there has been no output so far. The Frontline Socialist Party (new-JVP) was expected to issue a programme at its April 2012 inaugural convention but nothing so ambitious emerged. It is rumoured that the LSSP’s Left Tendency circulated a discusion document six months ago, but strangely it has remained under perpetual wraps. It is to kick-starting a draft that I set out on this mission but without illusions that my thoughts are but a starting point for other more competent hands to take further. A fortnight ago I offered a piece on the prevailing political landscape and followed this up last week with a discussion of economic policy structure. Today’s letter is about industrialization, the next will deal with agriculture, services and foreign investment. The final instalment, a
fortnight from now, will examine issues pertaining to Constitution, state and the national question.Creation of wealth
In modern times, neither the agricultural sector nor services are engines of added value or rapid development; this is true of large nations and small ones. This remark does not apply with equal force to countries at all stages of maturity, and agriculture (including fishing and animal husbandry) needs reinforcement in economically less advanced nations. It is also important to keep food security in mind. But agriculture is not the sector in which the largest long-term gains will be made. Also the older view that smaller countries are not suited for industrialization is incorrect; Taiwan is 55% the size of Lanka, has about the same population and is equally bereft of mineral wealth and gasoline. But it is an industrial powerhouse, a world leader in IT and electronics, and the world’s largest supplier of digital chips. South Korea is one and a half times our size and has double the population and is also resource poor, but it is the world’s seventh largest exporter and an even greater economic powerhouse than Taiwan (11-th largest economy in the world in PPP terms). Singapore is much smaller and with zero natural resources is an economic tiger.
Full Story>>>
