Sri Lanka is moving to standardize government IT and procurement through a centralized, ERP-style marketplace designed to integrate systems across all state entities, The Sunday Times January 4 reports. Led by the country’s Ministry of Digital Economy, the initiative aims to reduce duplication across ministries, centralize purchasing, and create shared digital services rather than maintaining siloed, agency-by-agency systems.
The plan includes the creation of a new GovTech authority and a restructured procurement model intended to widen participation by local product companies and startups. Deputy Minister for Digital Economy Eranga Weeraratna told the outlet they are in the final stages of securing cabinet approval for this “common marketplace.”
All ministries and state authorities are reportedly now expected to work with the Digital Economy Ministry for digitalization guidance. A separate central procurement authority is also being formulated to consolidate technology procurement across state agencies and align with a common guideline for the National Procurement Commission’s information system. The objective is to avoid duplicated system development and eliminate disconnects between entities by standardizing processes and oversight.
Procurement Reform, Startup Participation
Beyond system consolidation, the initiative explicitly targets procurement reform. The government plans to open state procurement more deliberately to local startups, encouraging them to bid into newly established digital procurement channels. Weeraratna said new information system guidelines will allow “procurement by prototyping,” with a stated preference for product companies over project-based vendors, and an intent to support those product firms in scaling their solutions.
The emerging GovTech entity is expected to operate as a self-sustaining authority with its own board, while a separate Digital Economy Authority will set policy and report to a cabinet subcommittee. This structure is intended to separate operational delivery from policy oversight, pairing execution under GovTech with strategic direction under the Digital Economy Authority.
Entrepreneurship, Skills, Pipeline Building
The Ministry of Digital Economy is also positioning entrepreneurship and skills development as part of a broader digital-state strategy. Acting Secretary Waruna Sri Dhanapala said the government is working to build a pipeline of local digital talent, pointing to roughly 600 startups and freelancers currently engaged, and has begun discussions with the Ministry of Finance to help these ventures enter formal business channels.
There is an expressed goal of promoting entrepreneurship as a viable career path from school level onward, linking the planned centralized ERP-style platform and procurement reforms to a wider ecosystem approach that connects policy, platforms, and domestic digital businesses.
What This Means for ERP Insiders
Government-wide ERP platforms are becoming instruments of procurement and policy as well as technology. Sri Lanka’s move toward a centralized, ERP-style marketplace illustrates how public-sector buyers are using shared platforms to standardize processes, reduce duplication, and exert greater control over data and spend. This raises expectations for vendors around interoperability and alignment with national digital strategies.
Product-centric GovTech procurement models are reshaping how vendors engage the public sector. Preferences for packaged solutions, procurement by prototyping, and structured participation by local startups suggest growing opportunity for repeatable, scalable offerings. This carries implications for how ERP vendors design products and partner ecosystems.
GovTech authorities are turning ERP into a backbone for local digital ecosystems. By pairing a self-sustaining GovTech operator with a policy-setting Digital Economy Authority, Sri Lanka is positioning state IT as a demand engine for local innovation. This signals new requirements for ERP providers operating in emerging markets where government platforms are being used to incentivize domestic digital capability growth.
