Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya yesterday called on the private sector to take calculated risks, invest in workforce development and help create meaningful employment opportunities at home, warning that the country’s transformation cannot be left to the Government alone.
Addressing the Sri Lanka Economic and Investment Summit 2026 organised by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, she urged the businesses to move beyond immediate commercial interests and take greater responsibility for developing the skills and opportunities needed to retain young talent.
“I would ask the private sector to take some calculated risks,” she said, stressing that the Government could neither take all the risks nor carry the entire responsibility for national economic transformation.
Dr. Amarasuriya urged businesses to work with vocational institutes to shape training programmes around industry requirements and, where necessary, invest in initiatives that may not deliver immediate profits but contribute to the country’s longer-term development.
The appeal comes as Sri Lanka seeks to move beyond economic stabilisation towards stronger growth, with the Government positioning digitalisation, technology-driven exports and workforce development as key pillars of the next phase.
“We have talked about our potential for so long. It’s time we actually realised it,” the Prime Minister said, calling for greater ambition and shared responsibility across Government, business and young people.
Outlining the Government’s digital transformation agenda, Dr. Amarasuriya said Sri Lanka was targeting a $ 15 billion digital economy by 2030, alongside $ 5 billion in digital exports and a digital workforce of 200,000 professionals.
Noting that the total exports had exceeded $ 9 billion in the first half of 2026, she said technology and business services continued to demonstrate momentum, highlighting the potential to move beyond reliance on low-cost services towards higher-value innovation.
She said the objective was to transform Sri Lanka from a consumer of technology into a creator of innovation, supported by stronger digital infrastructure, skills and partnerships with international investors.
“Today, our dialogue on nation-building in the digital age goes beyond simply adopting new tools. It is about building a strong, modern economy where everyone can thrive,” she stressed.
The Government had committed around Rs. 30 billion towards foundational digital transformation initiatives, with the Digital Economy Ministry providing a dedicated institutional structure to coordinate the effort.
Dr. Amarasuriya cited GovPay, which had processed over Rs. 6 billion in payments and connected over 300 organisations, as an example of how digital systems could simplify interactions between citizens, businesses and the State.
She said digital public infrastructure should reduce unnecessary physical visits and administrative delays, whilst improving transparency, service delivery and public trust.
The Prime Minister said digital transformation was also being pursued across healthcare, agriculture, energy and transport, with technology expected to improve productivity, access and efficiency.
In healthcare, the Government was advancing digital health frameworks and telemedicine networks, alongside plans for centralised electronic health records to allow authorised clinicians to access patient histories across the country.
In agriculture, it was working with the World Bank and other development partners to explore how technology could raise productivity and improve efficiency.
She also highlighted the role of digital energy management systems and smart grids in balancing variable renewable generation, improving electricity distribution and reducing the risk of power disruptions as demand for digital services expands.
In transport, online railway season ticketing, digital bus fare payments and online seat reservations were cited as examples of relatively simple technologies that could improve convenience. Further integration of digital ticketing, real-time fleet tracking and AI-driven traffic management could help reduce congestion, fuel consumption and uncertainty, she said.
“The Government’s measure of success, should be whether digitalisation makes daily life, public services, healthcare, education and business operations more accessible and convenient, rather than simply counting the number of applications developed,” she pointed out.
Dr. Amarasuriya said infrastructure alone would not deliver the digital economy ambition unless Sri Lanka also invested in people and adapted its education and training systems to changing workplace requirements.
“We really want to have a conversation with all of you,” she told the business community, urging employers to invest in workforce development as a shared national responsibility rather than focusing only on their immediate recruitment needs.
The Government had also developed a micro-credentials policy to support shorter, flexible learning pathways in fields such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, cybersecurity and digital finance, enabling workers to upgrade their skills throughout their careers.
The Prime Minister said digital technology could help decentralise economic opportunities by enabling talent in rural areas to access employment and markets without having to relocate to Colombo.
The Government wants to encourage regional technology hubs linking universities, vocational training centres and businesses, allowing more communities to participate in the digital economy.
However, she cautioned that technology would not automatically reduce inequality, warning that poorly managed digital transitions could reproduce existing disparities.
Dr. Amarasuriya said policies therefore had to remain citizen-centred and inclusive, ensuring that the benefits of digitalisation reached people across the country.
Daily FT