lessons from development of the East asian countries?

Question

What are the lessons that we as Sri Lankans can get from the development methods of east asian countries

Answer 1

well, what the japanese and south koreans have in common was the people embraced education. This boosted the tech level of the country making their industries more efficient and cutting edge.
There are stories from south korea where middle-range income mothers selling their bodies just to get their sons to the top schools and universities.
Contrast it to the poorer southeast asian countries, where funding for education and R&D is almost zero.

Answer 2

One possible lesson (and there are many) is that the development of large-scale export-oriented enterprise should be encouraged. Another is that policies that benefit farmers may not be the best policies for the long run (in a sucessfully developing country, the percentage of population employed in farming shrinks over time).