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| Sunday, 23 March 2003 |
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Rs. 4 billion allocated to develop NWP by Elmo Leonard The North Western Economic Development Commission (North Western EDC) commenced operations Wednesday last week, with the signing of 31 agreements involving investment exceeding Rs 4 billion (Rupees 96 to a U S Dollar) and employment opportunities for over 3,500 persons, under these projects. The Central Economic Development Commission (Central EDC) was inaugurated the same day, with the signing of a number of agreements. Five EDC's now replace the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka, which from 1992 was the nation's one stop shop for foreign investment. The projects which will begin in the North Western EDC is impressive, and include, eco tourism and tourist hotels and restaurants; cadjunut and bee keeping; cultivation of vegetables, fruits and foliage for export; oxidising and magnet manufacture; papaya and cured papain; rubberwood furniture; dairy including goat milk and fish production; poultry, curd butter, cheese and teak, mahogany and pepper plantations; ornamental fish, foliage; fruits and vegetables; coconut by-products; hydro power generation; low cost housing; and infrastructure development. The chairman of the two councils, Lalith Kotelawala, who spoke at both inaugurations, said that although Sri Lanka received independence 55 years ago, the nation was moving further into economic debt. With it, the rich were getting richer, and the poor, poorer. The policy Kotelawala would follow, as chairman of both EDC's would help to reverse that trend. Minister of Industries, Rohitha Bogollagama said that he conceived the idea of the BOI being replaced with five economic development commissions, when he was the director general of the BOI in 1994. The investment which the BOI effected from Colombo, would now be brought in from villages, for the benefit of the rural sector, Bogollagama said. Technology and know-how, would also be introduced at village level, and the rural economy would be uplifted. Ceylinco Group, donated Rs 14 million for the reconstruction of water management tanks, for agricultural irrigation purposes within the north-western region. The World Bank had pledged Rs 33 million towards the reconstruction of irrigation tanks on condition that government enforces a water tax levy. But, Minister of Irrigation and Water Management, Gamini Jayawickrema Perera said that he did not agree to a tax on water for irrigation purposes. The Ministry of Industries would allocate Rs 600 million from the Indian Line of Credit towards the development of small and medium industries in the small and medium sector, the Irrigation Minister said. Seylan Bank, (which comes under the Ceylinco group) will dispense a further Rs 5 million to assist the small and medium sector in this region. Mayor of Kandy, Kusara Senanayake said that Premier Ranil Wickremasinghe had a plan to develop Kandy, which included the extension of the boundaries of Kandy. The city was crowded, and congestion with traffic. Roads wuld be opened, and industries set up around Kandy. Speaking in Kandy, Kotelawala said that being the chairman of the Central EDC would be a difficult task, as it also covers the areas of the tea plantations which is home to more than one ethnic group, and areas like Aruradhapura and Polonnaruwa. Polonnaruwa, being on the boarders of the eastern province, which was the theatre of war for 20 years. Kotelawala appealed to the people of this region to assist, and advise him, so that he could in turn help them to improve their economy. The Ceylinco group of companies would donate large sums of money to towards the development of this region. Grameen credit company under the Ceylinco group would give women entrepreneurs instalments beginning with Rs 10,000, to develop self-employment ventures, Kotalawala said. |
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