Title: Privatisation gone wrong: the corporate tea sector of Sri Lanka

Authors: Rohantha N.A. Athukorala; Winai Wongsurawat

Addresses: College of Management, Mahidol University, Phayathai, Bangkok 10400, Thailand ' College of Management, Mahidol University, Phayathai, Bangkok 10400, Thailand

Abstract: The tea industry was introduced to Sri Lanka by the British in 1867. Overtime Ceylon Tea has grown to become an internationally-reputed, quality product and one of the key exports for the Sri Lankan economy. However today, the industry's future is clouded because the policies that are being implemented are not market driven. In 1992, when it was decided that the management of the tea industry would be privatised, 40% of the supply chain went through radical change with new thinking from leadership to harvesting. However, given that the ownership of the tea estates was with the Government, the private sector has been faced with many issues that have caused the industry to lose its competitiveness. The authors recommend a Strategic Evaluation Mechanism (SE Framework) as a basis by which a private public dialogue can take place and thereby force decisions to be taken in a more informed manner.

Keywords: market driven policies; balanced evaluation mechanism; private-public partnerships; PPP; regional plantation companies; privatisation; tea industry; Sri Lanka; strategic evaluation; competitiveness.

DOI: 10.1504/JGBA.2014.064079

Journal for Global Business Advancement, 2014 Vol.7 No.3, pp.198 - 208

Published online: 30 Apr 2015 *

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