Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said today that Sri Lanka should become one of Asia's strongest economies by 2013, when it celebrates the 75th anniversary of independence.

Addressing the Parliament on the mid-term economic policies of the government, Wickremesinghe pointed out that Sri Lanka lost its way in the post-independence years. Sri Lanka has to move in a well planned path to become a strong economy within the next eight years, Wickremesinghe said.

Wickremesinghe said that the generation of one million jobs, increasing the income, improving the rural economy, giving property rights to rural people, estate workers and public servants were among the mid-term goals of the government.

Sri Lanka cannot expect a favorable international monetary environment due to difficulties in the US and China, Wickremesinghe pointed out. Furthermore, the economic policies do not favor exports and there is a serious lack of high-tech exports from the country. Sri Lanka should improve on its high-tech exports and reform export economy through favourable monetary policies, Wickremesinghe said.

He added that the country cannot move forward through temporary solutions.