Two and a half weeks after the Sri Lanka Broadband Summit, the coverage continues, this time in the highest-circulation English language newspaper, the Sunday Times.
The Sri Lankan government should be focusing more on investment and not subsidies to develop telecommunications in the country, says Rohan Samarajiva Chairman of LIRNEasia.
Addressing the second Broadband Forum held at the Galle Face Hotel in Colombo recently Mr. Samarajiva said that the Government said, “The Sri Lankan government should focused more on investment and not subsidies. Taxing incoming and outgoing calls in this day and age is silly. Sri Lanka has desisted from imposing universal service levies and now is not the time to start. Spend down the accumulated funds and rely on public-private partnerships for continuation.” If subsidies are required one should use general tax revenues and go for matching funds but not pure subsidies. Investment has to be the priority, he added.
We hope to tell the government how to spend down the accumulated funds.
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