Sri Lanka’s stalled Colombo port city back on track
Dec 11, 2015 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s is all set for the Chinese-built port city project to commence work soon, a media report said.
“We have given all the necessary clearances.
Now it is up to the investors to sort out the minor details,” Ravi Karunanayake, Sri Lanka’s finance minister told the South China Post newspaper.
“On our part, the government is happy with the environmental impact assessment report for the project.
It is now under public consultation,” he said.
Earlier, Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that the country plans to have a ‘unique financial and business district’ in Colombo when the sea reclamation project by a Chinese firm is resumed.
Sri Lanka’s much talked Chinese-built port city project was under water for a long period of time as the new administration questioned project approvals by the last regime.
The builders of Sri Lanka’s Chinese-funded port city project told LBO in an earlier interview they were awaiting a positive reply from the government after the suspension of work citing environment concerns by the administration which came in to power in January.
The 1.4 billion US dollar Port City is to be constructed between the Southern edge of the new Colombo South Port and the Fort Lighthouse.
The total area of sea to be reclaimed is 252 hectares.
Most Sri Lankans seems to have limitations with conceptualization of an idea. This probably is the case why it is called Chinese Port City. This limitation may be reflected in all spheres of governance from policy formulation to legal enactments. Effects of this trickle down to organizational structures and behaviour impeding their performance. While some are aware that their performance is not optimal, the methods employed to improve them too are, haphazard and therefore equally limited. Lack of long term vision and commitment to acomplish them too are problems. – Rookie