Galle Harbour,

Govt's Rs. 16 billion gift for Southern tourism

by Shirajiv SIRIMANE in Galle

Agriculture, tourism and fisheries sectors are key to the development of the Southern Province on which over 75 percent of the population are dependant.

Both Tourism and fisheries sectors suffered a major setback with the 2004 tsunami washing off livelihoods of people who depended on these industries. However with swift action taken by the government backed by the corporate sector fisheries sector and livelihoods of the people were restored.

However, in addition to the tsunami, the terrorist problem too was a major stumbling block to the tourism sector. With the government crushing terrorism, tourism is set to reach greater heights. Signs of prosperity to the industry are already showing with arrivals increasing by over 40 percent every month as against the previous year.

The government, in a bid to strengthen the tourism sector and woo up market clientele to the Southern province, has decided to convert the historic Galle Harbour to a tourist harbour. This is a first for Sri Lanka (and many say it's a region first as well) and clearly underlines the commitment of the government to develop the Southern province.

The Galle harbour was accidentally discovered by Lorenzo De Almeida, the son of the Viceroy of Goa who set foot in Galle when his fleet of ships on the way to the Maldives in 1505 became more important with the Colombo Port reaching its maximum capacity.

Galle Fort and the lighthouse, icons of the Southern capital.

Port Authority staff at work at Galle harbour

Ships anchored at the Galle Harbour

The government was looking at alternative ports and the development of Galle and Hambantota harbours have been placed on high priority. The first phase construction work of the Hambantota Harbour is nearing completion with over 75% work successfully completed at present. The port project is scheduled to be completed by 2010, one year ahead of schedule. The project is expected to be completed in four phases and would take 15 years for the completion of the entire project.

After completion, the harbour will enable 33 vessels to anchor at once and modern technology will be utilized to handle its operational work. In addition, an 825-feet long new berth will be constructed which will facilitate the handling of any kind of bulk cargo including containers from Trincomalee harbour. At present, the Trincomalee Port can handle only wheat and cement cargo. Colombo, Trincomalee and Hambantota Harbours would cater mainly to commercial operations and this is the reason the government decided to make Galle a tourist harbour and also because it is recognised as one of the world's best suited locations for the cruise and yacht seasons which prevail from October to March during the non-monsoon period.

Media spokesman of the National Development Centre Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena says the government is to spend more than 16,000 million on this project.

In the first phase of construction, 40 craft with sails will berth at the port. This phase of construction is expected to be completed by 2012. The construction work on the Yacht Marina Zone at the Galle Harbour commenced on January 15. Under the first phase, development basic facilities for the yacht marina will be constructed.

The project will utilize the maximum usage of local engineering expertise, mainly from the Ports Authority of Sri Lanka. Phase two of the project will include the extension of the yacht marina to accommodate 30 more yachts and development facilities for cruise ships with berthing requirements.

Expressing his views, Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Chairman Dr. Priyath Bandu Wickrama stated that under the new management policies implemented by the SLPA, regional ports such as the Galle Port will be developed enabling independent development.

He added that the development of the Galle Port will immensely benefit the elevation of tourism in the historical city of Galle and in return it will benefit not only Galle but also the total local economic development of Sri Lanka.

All these constructions at the Galle Port are being carried out under the fullest supervision of the Executive Director of the SLPA Dr. Sanjaya Sedara Senarath.

Since Galle has been named as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, authorities would also study their plan and not have any construction damaging the heritage of this historic city.

Sports tourism

When completed, the Galle Harbour project would also help sports tourism as there are cricket enthusiasts who would anchor to watch international matches played at the Galle Stadium.

The Colombo-Matara highway first segment linking Galle would be ready early next year which would bring a tourists from the Colombo airport to Galle in less than two hours.

"This would definitely help over 20,000 hotel rooms and the cottage industry in the South," said Chairman Hikkaduwa Hoteliers Association, Siri Gunawardane.

Both these projects coupled with the expansion of the Koggala airport would help to bring in high spenders who prefer to waste less time travelling.

The arrival and departure lounges at the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA), Colombo have already been completed and a range of new features have been added to the airport which enable it to cater to more aircraft.

Minister of Ports Development Chamal Rajapaksa told Sunday Observer that the Weerawila Airport would be ready in two years bringing in more airlines and tourists and most importantly much needed revenue to the Southerner who was ignored by successive governments.