The Government has decided to reorganize the existing institutional set-up, regarding foreign trade and re-establish the International Trade Office (ITO) to connect all the relevant institutions, and synergize their work, to boost the external trade sector to the National Economy.This decision was taken on the instructions of President Ranil Wickremesinghe.Sri Lanka can benefit greatly from linking with regional and global value chains and this is a major element of the Government’s economic revival programme, the President’s Media Division (PMD) said.

It said: “The plan is to first integrate into South Asia and then expand to the east; China, Thailand and Indonesia linking to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) which consists of 30% of the world’s GDP, trade and population”.

To achieve this overarching objective, there is no alternative but to formulate a strong institutional structure to manage Sri Lanka’s presence in international trade while removing the existing compartmentalization of trade-related institutions. Thus, the Government has decided to reorganize the existing institutional set-ups and newly establish the International Trade Office (ITO), the PMD said.

“The ITO, once it is established through an Act of Parliament, will be headed by an Ambassador of International Trade, supported by an eminent group of advisors who has expertise in international trade. Designated officers, from all the relevant institutions, will be attached to it. The National Trade Negotiation Committee, which undertakes the Free Trade Negotiations, will also be an integral part of the ITO. As announced in the 2023 Budget Speech, the ITO will initially be established, under the Ministry of Finance, and, subsequently, it will be amalgamated into the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to implement Sri Lanka’s foreign trade development policy, across the world, with enhanced and effective coordination.

“Until the establishment of the ITO is fully completed, the core staff of the institution will come from the Presidential Secretariat. Taking immediate measures to operationalize the Sri Lanka – Singapore FTA (SLSFTA), which entered into force, in May 2018, but has not been operationalized till now, will be the first task of the ITO. The Joint Committee, set up in accordance with SLSFTA, comprising designated officials from both countries, will meet in January 2023 and finalize the modalities to agree on operationalization.

“In parallel, by next January the ITO will resume negotiations of the three FTAs with India, China and Thailand. The Chief Negotiator and the National Trade Negotiation Committee (NTNC), comprising Sub Committees on specific areas, have been appointed by the Cabinet for this task. In parallel, the government plans to resume negotiation of the three FTAs with India, China and Thailand. The 12th round of negotiations with India, the 7th round of negotiations with China and the 3rd round of negotiations with Thailand, will be held during the first two months of 2023.

“It is planned to complete these negotiations, possibly within the next year. Stakeholder consultations will be held with the relevant Chambers/Associations, before and after every round of negotiation, to make them aware of the status of negotiations, as they are the ultimate beneficiaries of the FTAs, with enhanced market access. Already, the first stakeholder awareness programme was held on 17 November, 2022. Moreover, simultaneous actions will also be taken, through this office, to revive the PTA negotiations with Bangladesh and Indonesia.”