| You
are in Special
Projects |
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| Enterprise Information
Project (Eip) |
| The Enterprise Information Project
assists private sector enterprises, promotional institutions and
public planners to obtain business related information for decision
making.
Sri Lanka – German Enterprise Information Project
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Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)
are seamlessly facing the problem of obtaining valuable information
to operate their businesses. Most of information systems in Sri Lanka
have general information, but not the specialized information to suit
the needs of MSMEs. It is also prudent, that rural communities in
Sri Lanka have limited access to Information and Communications Technology
(ICT), hence unable to access information for business development,
especially in the areas of buyer/seller contacts, current market prices
of commodities traded locally and overseas, latest technologies that
could apply to develop the quality of their products and to meet the
ever increasing demand of their customers. Lack of access to latest
information and communication technologies is the main reasons as
to why they are unaware of the latest developments taking place in
the business environment.
In recognition of the importance of developing an ICT based information
exchange, the Government of Sri Lanka, after evaluating over 40 local
Trade Promotion Organizations, entrusted the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
(CCC), in 1998, to develop a distinct business development service
– i.e. information – in the regions of Sri Lanka by establishment
of a web based Business Information Portal (www.bip.lk) with on-line
payment facility for information trading, for the benefit of rural
MSMEs in Sri Lanka. The overriding purpose of the portal is to support
“National Development” at large by providing effective
(ICT) support by establishment of a specialized, in depth preferred
point of reference for MSMEs who are unable to obtain quality information
on time at an affordable cost.
The www.bip.lk
has contributed towards developing a common market place for information
trading. Eight (08) Regional Business Information Centres (BIS-Centers)
are linked with the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce to provide international
and national-level business information to regional MSMEs. At the
same time, regional BIS-Centers facilitates entering and dissemination
of information via a chain of Regional Information Desks, finally
by promoting in regionally important business data (e.g. business
contacts – local/overseas, general business information such
as export/import trade statistics, rates of exchange, economic information,
trade/investment policies, rules/regulations etc.) that could be retrieved
at any point in the country and in the world over the Internet.
The system does not only confined to local MSMEs but also to the MSMEs
in overseas, since it has a web based interface which links partners
by way of a two-way window, where the portal would serve both foreign
entities interested in Sri Lanka as well as local entities interested
in establishing contacts with institutions representing specific industries,
markets or regions overseas. This is distinct from many portals that
are designed mainly to attract an external audience. With the expansion
of the system in 2003, www.bip.lk integrated many national data sources
forming a comprehensive data platform to retrieve customized information
to exactly meet the demands of the SMEs.
The project was implemented in 1998 at the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce
with a special focus on Foreign Trade/Information Division where EIP
support package consists of three main components: |
| 1. |
Up-grading ICT-infrastructure and networking
of BIS-Centres, eg: enhancing connectivity, setting-up databases,
electronic document management systems, etc. |
| 2. |
Professional consultancies for planning, implementation
and performance measurement of BIS, eg: business planning, organizational
development etc. |
| 3. |
Human Resource Development of BIS-personnel,
eg: information management, customer care, information market-development,
etc. |
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The ultimate objective of the project was to introduce an Information
Communication Technology (Internet) driven Business Information System
for various groups of clients for development of their business activities.
This objective anticipated to be achieved through the following 3-project
results:- |
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| 1. |
Establishment of an ICT - based information
system |
| 2. |
Creating a network of partner organizations in
the regions |
| 3. |
Promoting the use of commercial BIS |
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|
 The
Enterprise Information Project (EIP) has been in operation since 1998
and was involved in establishing and developing an island-wide Business
Information Network (BIN) in the regions of Colombo, Hambantota, Kandy,
Kurunegala, Matara, Matale, Ratnapura and Jaffna. The ultimate goal
is to network all the districts enabling free flow of business related
information for the benefit of entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka. Through
the system it is envisaged that there is a great potential for suppliers
i.e. farmers to link directly with exporters thus invalidating the
role of the middlemen during their transactions.
The innovative component of EIP is the Business Information System
(BIS) computerised database establsihed at the Ceylon Chamber of
Commerce (CCC). The system is developed taking into consideration
the user requirements of all the partner organisations. The BIS
operates on an Oracle 8i platform with three main components, namely,
Trade Information System (TIS) of CCC, Sector Base Filing System
(SBFS) introduced by EIP and the External data sources that provide
validated business information – e.g. Sri Lanka Ports Authority,
Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Industrial Technology Institute and Sri
Lanka Customs. The system also provides the facility to input, update,
process, store, transmit simple output formats for the use of relevant
decision makers. EIP, with its second phase which commenced in 2002
expanded its data domain to a wider array of external data sources.
These data sources provides validated business information in the
areas of new technology, procedures, regulations, standards and
satistics. Special emphasis was placed on the sectors identified
by the Government of Sri Lanka as thrust sectors. They are Paddy,
Fisheries, Rubber, Garments, Spices, Handicrafts, Gems/ Jewellery,
Fruits/Vegetables and Coconut. In addition to these sectors, general
sectors such as import/export and trading/investment related data
sources are also identified as key components that could nurture
the contents of the database.
Substantial volume of research were carried out to assess the best
possible solution for the expansion of the network and it was decided
after a through study that an Internet based platform would be the
ideal for such a sophisticated system to run effectively and efficiently.
Inclusion of a Payment Gateway facilitating purchases of information
from the Internet and settle the payments online with the use of
a Credit Card (system was launched in February 2004). Further, the
www.bip.lk was enhanced in 2005 with on-line payment facility linked
with off-line delivery mechanism for voluminous publications. Users
could select and settle the payment on-line and a Courier Company
linked with the system (with a goods tracking system) delivers the
items purchased to the customer’s doorstep within a stipulated
time. This facility is highly popularized amongst the customers
who wish to purchase e-books from www.bip.lk
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