As per Global Innovation Index, Sri Lanka ranks low, i.e. 89th position, among 129 countries. Similarly, the number of entrepreneurs/business enterprises in Sri Lanka is only around 230,000 which is just about 2% of the population as opposed to 27.5% in Thailand, 19.6% in Vietnam,11.6 % in Bangladesh and 7.5% in China.
However, now there is a growing interest in and commitment to innovation and many institutions in Sri Lanka, including universities, R & D institutions, schools, vocational institutes, and industry are engaged in creative and innovative work.
As a result, new knowledge and discoveries emanating from research are being transformed into innovative products, processes, services and applications and many innovators are looking for a platform to meet prospective investors to take their product to the next stage, leading to commercialization.
Therefore the Working Committee on Technology and Innovation of NSF proposes to set up an Innovator-Inventor Marketplace as an annual event to provide a much sought-after opportunity for potential innovators to meet with prospective investors. A preliminary discussion in this regard was held on 17 Feb 2020 with the participation of Prof. Ranjith Senaratne, Chairman, NSF, Prof. Nalin de Siva, Chairman of Working Committee on "Technology and Innovation, Dr. Nayana Dehigama (proponent of market place) and Mr. Janaka Karunasena, Head, Division of Technology, NSF. It was decided to meet regularly to transform the proposition into a reality.
