Sri Lanka, Nov. 15 -- There is a vast amount of hidden wealth waiting to be unlocked in non-financial public commercial assets in the country. These public commercial assets fall into two categories. First, the operational assets which are the state-owned enterprises (SOEs) do not operate to their true potential in generating returns. Second, the state-owned real estate which is less visible does not generate adequate returns because they are mainly under-recognised or when recognised not put into the best use to maximise returns.

If the Government views these public assets in commercial terms, returns similar to what the private sector earns from its assets can be generated. For this to happen, the country needs to create National Wealt...