An investigation into the contribution of Small and Medium Enterprises on the Sri Lankan Economy after the War in 2009
An investigation into the contribution of Small Medium Enterprises on the Sri Lankan economy after the War in 2009
Abstract
Small and medium size enterprises play an important part for the world’s economy, some believe they are the financial backbone of developing countries. Thus, the contributions of small and medium enterprises have a significant impact on the stability of the economy. Earlier empirical studies show that small and medium enterprise growth in Sri Lanka identifies a low level of entrepreneurial orientation when compared to developed nations. Existing literature on the subject matter will be used to support these arguments. This paper consists of qualitative findings of three small and medium size enterprises in Sri Lanka. Thus, this research investigates the contributions that small and medium enterprises make – the financial opportunities and barriers that they face in this post-war period.
Chapter One: Introduction
Research question; what are the contributions of small and Medium Enterprises to the Sri Lankan economy Post War?
1.1 Background of Sri Lanka
Lying off the southern tip of India, the tropical island of Sri Lanka is an economically developing country in Asia. The capital, Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte is a suburb of the largest city, Colombo. Sri Lanka is an important producer of coffee, gemstones, coconuts, rubber, tea and the native cinnamon. Since 1978, successive governments have taken initiative to develop small and medium enterprises. Nevertheless, a major proportion of small medium enterprises still remain informal and growth constrained. (Kelegma S., 2002; (Weerasinghe, et al., n.d.; Nishantha & Padmasiri, 2010)
The almost three decades of internal war between the Sri Lankan army and the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam ended in 2009. (Ratner, S R, 2012, pp 795) Since 2009, Sri Lanka has made amends to overcome the ethnic and religious tension. Over the past decade, Sri Lankan economy has seen a positive economic growth. However, the most economic development is concentrated in the western province of Sri Lanka.
1.2 Research Justification
The importance of small and medium enterprises has not been identified or been recently researched in Sri Lanka. This research paper will consist of analysing how small and medium enterprises are helping the war-torn economy of Sri Lanka. Furthermore, it will utilise interviews with existing entrepreneurs to understand if the country provides sufficient financial aid for them to grow and whether aspiring entrepreneurs are likely to make contributions to the economy. Universal justification of contributions attributed to small and medium enterprises will be discussed in the preceding chapters of this paper with a view to acknowledging existing literature. Especial focus will be a primary qualitative study that will examine the correlation between ...
