Ranil says Govt. won’t veer away from intl. finance centre plan

Wednesday, 24 August 2016 00:09 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Untitled-6 Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday assured Parliament that his Government would not deviate from building the international finance centre against the proposed Port City. He also rejected the possibility of building a special Chinese industrial zone on reclaimed land.

“We never had plans to have an industrial zone there. However, the previous Government had plans to have a nice racetrack and casinos. The port city’s detailed plans are not finalised. But we have come to an agreement with China on construction. China will establish the South Asian branch of one of its key banks in this proposed international finance centre in Colombo.

We will discuss the matter in this House. The plan is to present the report before the end of this year,” Wickremesinghe revealed.

The Prime Minister went on to state: “During our days in the Opposition we planned to have a finance city by removing the Welikada Prison or to have it in Ratmalana. But the environmental report allowed the project to go forward and reclaim land. We have also looked into the issues of the fishing families. The Ministry of Megapolis will take necessary action. As for Welikada, a key trade centre will come up there.”

China’s Bank to set up South Asia branch in Sri Lanka

China’s Bank is to establish its South Asian branch in Sri Lanka, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told parliament on Tuesday.

“China agreed to set up the branch here in Colombo at the proposed Financial City,” Wickremesinghe said.

“We expect to have discussions about the proposal with China,” he said, adding that the proposals could be released before the end of this year.