- Alternate procedure for approvals - Committee studied 54 proposals in two years The Cabinet-appointed Single Window Investment Appraisal Committee (SWIAC) set up at the Board of Investment (BOI) to fast track the evaluation and approval of select investment proposals in 2016 has been defunct since last September. The BOI confirmed to The Sunday Morning Business that this committee was no longer functional and that its responsibilities were now handled by the Board of Directors of the BOI with input and expertise of key government institutions such as the Treasury and the Attorney General. The purpose of the SWIAC, headed by Ministry of Finance and Mass Media Secretary Dr. R. H. S. Samaratunga, was to evaluate large-scale, complicated, or controversial investment proposals in a timely manner to avoid the kind of delays and bureaucracy that may deter other prospective investors. Since its establishment, the SWIAC has held 31 meetings and has received 54 investment proposals out of which 26 were approved, five were differed, nine were escalated, and 14 were rejected. Out of the 26 projects approved by the Single Window Panel, 14 were manufacturing projects, five were utilities and services projects, four were infrastructure projects, and three were agricultural projects. No reasons were provided by the BOI for the discontinuation of the SWIAC, although reliable sources said that it is unlikely to have been due to the political crisis that erupted in October, as meetings were not held since September, 2018. A more likely reason may have been the controversy that was created due to allegations that the BOI had asked for commissions for the commencement of a proposed high-speed electric train project in September. The BOI however, completely rejected these allegations as baseless, stating that it rejected the investment proposal as the investor had requested for tax holidays and large areas of land, but failed to provide sufficient financial and technical credentials and relevant project reports expected for such projects. Shortly afterwards, President Maithripala Sirisena appointed his Chief of Staff Hemasiri Fernando as the Chairman of the BOI after suddenly dissolving the Board of Directors of the BOI, and then removed the Director General. In the process that is currently followed, the screening committee at BOI, which receives all proposals, escalates the complicated or large-scale proposals to the Board of Directors of the BOI which in turn, studies the proposals with the input of relevant departments. The Board of Directors which comprised three members earlier has now been expanded to comprise five members for this purpose, and is headed by BOI Chairman Hemasiri Fernando. Thereafter, the board escalates the proposals to the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade, which the BOI falls under. The Ministry subsequently studies the proposal with the recommendations of the board and presents them for cabinet approval. When the SWIAC was effective, these proposals were sent to the Screening Committee from where they were transferred to the SWIAC following a study. Headed by the Secretary to the Treasury, the SWIAC consisted of the Economic Advisor to the President, the Senior Advisor to the Prime Minister, Chairman of the BOI, Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA), the Technical Advisor to the Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade, and one other member representing the Director Board of the BOI.