Future Possibilities
Given the will to establish such an Institute among the various stakeholders including the Parliament and the Council of Ministers, hopes are running high that the IEDI will have a considerable positive impact on the industrial development efforts of the country. It may be necessary here to have a look at the potentials which exist given the establishment of the IEDI taking into account the process of enactment and related developments in the environment.
A Resource Centre for Industrial Development
A role that could be played by the new Institute would be to act as a resource centre on industrial development. It could provide the government with the required information to take effective policy decisions, formulate alternative strategies that could be followed and give advice to the private sector and donor agencies interested in supporting this sector.
An Umbrella for Support Organizations
The Institute may also fulfil the role of an umbrella under which various organizations and projects in the field of industrial development could reside. This will ensure a better sharing of experiences and information and provide the numerous support organizations with a shared vision and help formulate strategies to realize it. It would also contribute a lot towards reducing duplication and overlapping of development efforts in the field. The fact that centres and projects under this umbrella would retain their autonomy vis-à-vis the Institute would ensure that the constituent organizations function in a flexible and professional way.
A Medium for Decentralized Industrial Development
The Institute, in addition to the power to establish various centres and projects to promote various aspects of industrial development, also has the authority to form governing boards for these centres. This is a potent instrument that can be used for localized industrial development. In addition to having the national level actors on board, it is essential that the importance and ownership of the services are taken at the local level. Industrial Development Centres could be formed in municipalities with the governing board consisting of local business people, representatives of the municipality, promotional offices, local chambers and other stakeholders. Given the imminent announcement of the decentralization policy and forthcoming act which devolves power to the grassroots these local centres could play a leading role there.
A Common Forum for Industrial Development
The Institute as an autonomous body not aligned with any sector or interest can play the vital role of providing a forum for discussions and debates related to industrial development. The human and institutional resources at its disposal would also ensure that technical and professional inputs would be given to any such discussions.