Technology Problems in Small and Medium Scale Enterprises in Sri Lanka With Reference to Footwear and Leather Products Manufacturing Sector in the Western Province
Abstract
Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) play an important role in the nationaleconomy through generation of employments, contributing to the growth of GDP,embarking on innovations and stimulating of other economic activities. This sector issaid to be the backbone of all developed and developing nations. The development ofthis sector is very important to developing countries as poverty and unemployment arethe persisting problems in those economies.
In the recent, this industry has been seriously affected by dumping of Footwear& Leather products from East Asian countries, especially from China. The Technologycapability to the Footwear and Leather product industry is negligible compared withglobal area. This research has focused on the local Footwear & Leather product industrywith an emphasis on the technological aspects. It is intended to identify present status ofTechnology & Technology Changes in SMEs in Sri Lanka. Final objective was torecommend in-depth solutions for the above identified technological problems.
This research was carried out in several phases. The initial phase to assess thelevel of technology used in the Footwear & Leather product industry in other countries aliterature survey was carried out. Information was taken from theses, journal papers, andarticles and from websites related to technology providers. Expert knowledge in thissector was elicited through interviews. For this purpose a questionnaire was formulatedto collect data and has selected 30 registered industries under this sector. The collecteddata was analyzed using a Statistical Package as MINITAB 14 to test the hypothesizedrelationships of independent and dependent factors of technology for this industry.
Finally this research makes recommendations to the policy makers, governmentto design the policies and frame works to protect and development of the technologyand business field of this sector under SMEs including an appropriate technologypolicy.
Key words: Technology, SME, Footwear, Leather
