Supported by a Rs. 1 billion allocation dedicated to the commercialization of research and development (R&D) under the government’s 2025 budget, the Ministry of Industry is preparing to launch a nationwide SME incubator system campaign.
National Enterprise Development Authority (NEDA) Chairman Lakshman Abeysekara said that these programmes will initially be implemented through a public-private partnership (PPP) model, and will incorporate a “people’s partnership” component in the later stages.
“Our aim is to support the commercialization of innovations. We will collaborate with universities and private companies to launch this programme. “This will be our foundation for this year,” Abeysekara said.
He shared the update while addressing a post-budget forum organised by the Institute of Certified Management Accountants (CMA) of Sri Lanka last week.
In addition to the incubator business, the Ministry of Industry has outlined several other broad strategies for SME development, including the establishment of a dedicated SME Development Bank in conjunction with the launch of the National Credit Guarantee Institute (NCGI).
With the support of the Asian Development Bank, the NCGI will provide partial loan guarantees for loans to SMEs through participating financial institutions. The institution will also provide services such as collateral assurance to ensure guaranteed recovery operations and risk management through risk-based pricing.
According to Abeysekara, these financial institutions have been created to provide collateral-free loans to facilitate essential financial support for SMEs.
“Several banks have come forward to participate in this initiative. It will be further supported by the formal ecosystem created by the Ministry of Industry.” Abeysekara said.
