Sri Lanka’s National Export Development Plan (NEDP) 2026–2030 was formally presented to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake at the Presidential Secretariat on Tuesday, setting a target of US$36 billion in export revenue by 2030, the President’s Media Division said.
The five-year strategy was developed by the Export Development Board (EDB) under the Ministry of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development, with technical assistance from the Asian Development Bank’s Policy-Based Lending Programme. Formulation of the plan was proposed as a national priority in the 2025 Budget, and the Cabinet of Ministers approved the document as the country’s official strategic framework for export development on May 4, Ada Derana reported.
The framework is built around two pillars. The “Horizontal” pillar covers trade facilitation, trade finance, investment ecosystem development, market access, supply chain management, consolidation centres, quality infrastructure, ESG compliance, and skills, innovation and entrepreneurship support across all export sectors.
The second pillar identifies eight priority “Vertical” sectors to drive diversification and value addition: auto components, minerals-based industries, rubber-based industries, marine-based industries including boat and shipbuilding, spices and concentrates, digital products and services, electrical and electronic components, and processed food and beverages.
The PMD said the plan was developed following consultations from October to December 2025 and workshops in January 2026, drawing on inputs from more than 300 stakeholders across government, the private sector, civil society and international development partners. Industry Minister Sunil Handunnetti, Deputy Finance and Planning Minister Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando, Senior Additional Secretary to the President Russell Aponso, Industry Secretary Thilaka Jayasundara and EDB Chairman Mangala Wijesinghe attended the presentation.
Tuesday’s event marks the formal rollout of a framework the Cabinet recognised in early May as the country’s medium-term export strategy. The plan is also linked to the ADB’s US$100 million export diversification programme, which is funding institutional reforms and the provincial laboratory testing PPP being piloted ahead of full implementation.
The launch comes as Sri Lanka’s external sector is under fresh pressure from a weaker rupee and conflict-driven trade disruption, with January–April goods exports reaching $5.78 billion and the EDB pushing more aggressively into pharmaceuticals, ICT services and electronics to escape the country’s traditional tea-and-apparel concentration.
Sources: Newswire, June 11 · Ada Derana, June 16
