• Provisions affecting BOI not yet activated without gazette notification
• Govt. signals intention to review and amend act
• Employee rights guaranteed, but future depends on proposed changes

No legal impediment exists for the continued functioning of the Board of Investment (BOI), notwithstanding the enactment of the Economic Transformation Act (ETA) No.45 of 2024, which proposes the establishment of two new entities in its place, according to the BOI Director General.

Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, BOI Director General Renuka M. Weerakone revealed that the BOI continued to exist as a singular entity as before. 

She added that they had not given effect to the bifurcation of its role between the two new entities proposed under the Economic Transformation Act.

Weerakone justified the continuation of the status quo at the BOI, explaining that the provisions of the aforementioned act had so far come into force only with respect to the other institutions referred to therein, while those relating to the BOI had not taken effect yet.

“The BOI provisions have not come into force because there was an ultimate date in the act, where they had to publish a gazette in order to enforce it on the BOI,” she claimed.

Accordingly, she noted that since the gazette, as required by the Economic Transformation Act, had yet to be published, the provisions relating to the BOI had not come into force yet.

The BOI Director General further revealed that they had been informed that the incumbent Government intended to review the Economic Transformation Act and make certain amendments to it.

Commenting on the fate of BOI employees, Weerakone stated that their rights had been largely guaranteed under the act. 

However, she added that since the Government intended to review and amend the act, it would be prudent to await the changes before commenting on how the proposed amendments might affect the rights of BOI employees.

The Economic Transformation Act No.45 of 2024 proposed the establishment of an Economic Commission to streamline economic activity and trade, and splitting the role of the BOI between Zones SL, Invest Sri Lanka, and the Economic Commission. 

Additionally, the act also sets up specialised bodies to focus on promoting foreign investment (Invest Sri Lanka), developing industrial zones (Zones SL) and international trade (Office for International Trade), boosting productivity (National Productivity Commission), and providing economic expertise (Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade).