Sri Lanka to accelerate development of Colombo Port city: PM Rajapaksa

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa on December 7 said that the Sri Lankan government will firmly support and accelerate the development of the Colombo Port City project constructed by China to ensure that it will emerge as a new business hub. Rajapaksa was speaking at a grand ceremony marking the opening of the project for the investors on Saturday. Other important officials present at the event included Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka Cheng Xueyuan and officials of the Chinese Embassy. Port City is Sri Lanka's largest Foreign Direct Investment project with huge investment potential. The project is expected to create over 80,000 jobs.

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A Chinese news agency reported that the Port city, spanning through 269 hectares of reclaimed land from the sea, was officially declared part of the Colombo District. 

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Port City also issued commemorative stamp, first-day cover 

On December 7, Port City Colombo also issued a commemorative stamp and the first-day cover celebrating the addition of 269 hectares to the land of Sri Lanka in the Colombo Central Business District, as per reports. Grand fireworks display engineered by a renowned Chinese fireworks team followed the event. Reports also mention that the second phase of the Port City project, under which highways, electricity, water systems, and common amenities will be constructed, will commence on December 8. Arrangements are in place to auction the land, which comes under the purview of the Urban Development Authority (UDA), for investment projects.

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Rajapaksa laid the foundation of the project in 2014

Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa, when he was President, laid the foundation stone for Colombo Port City in 2014 in the presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping. With a total investment of US $ 1.5 billion, the initial plan was to reclaim 233 hectares of sea area between Colombo Port and Galle Face. The Good Governance Government, which came to power in 2015, later suspended the construction of the project and amended the original agreement. With this, the reclaimed land area was increased to 269 hectares, out of which 178 hectares of land was allotted for constructions, 116 hectares will be owned by the Chinese company on a lease and 62 hectares by the government of Sri Lanka. 

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(With inputs from agencies)

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