The Investor Facilitation Coordinating Committee Meeting chaired by Investment Promotion State Minister Dilum Amunugama was recently held at the Investor Facilitation Centre (IFC), to review and discuss the issues currently faced by investors with respect to seeking approvals from relevant line agencies for investment projects.

During the meeting, the issues faced by four BOI companies operating in diverse sectors such as agriculture, fish export and mixed development, were taken into consideration. The total investment value of the projects that the four companies are currently involved in, stand as USD 76 Million with nearly 2,000 employment opportunities.

As such, the concerns with regard to the delay in obtaining lease agreement for Kuda Oya and Demodara lands from the Land Commissioner Department and obtaining the concurrence of the Department of Fisheries to purchase fish from foreign flag vessels at the Colombo Port, were raised.

Furthermore, discussions were held with officials of the Ministry of Power and Energy in relation to the approval for establishing two fuel filling stations at Katunayake and Biyagama Export Processing Zones. Also, the issues associated to the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority and Condominium Management Authority were discussed with relevant officials.

Accordingly, State Minister Amunugama directed the officials of pertinent line agencies to expedite the actions taken to resolve the pending issues of the investors. He also appreciated the presence of the officials of line agencies and their efforts to facilitate the investors in doing business in Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, the investors lauded the BOI initiative to establish the IFC, the one-stop shop service, which helps investors obtain all the approvals required for investment projects under one umbrella. Moreover, they pointed out the significance of conducting review meetings of this nature to appraise on projects that are being implemented and to address concerns of the investors.

Investor Facilitation Coordinating Committee Meetings are regularly conducted to get definite timelines for resolving issues related to investment projects pending with different line agencies. These review meetings are attended by BOI officials, relevant ministry and line agency officials, concerned investors, and other stakeholders.