The Asian Development Bank Provides Financial Assistance of US$ 100 million for Greater Colombo Wastewater Management Project

The Asian Development Bank provides financial assistance amounting to US$ 100 mn for the implementation of Greater Colombo Wastewater Management Project in Sri Lanka. The total investment cost of this project is US$ 116.63 million of which the Government provides US $ 16.63 million.

The Project is aimed at upgrading sewerage infrastructure by rehabilitating the main sewerage system in the Greater Colombo area. This includes rehabilitation of 2 marine outfalls in Mutwal and Wellawatte and refurbishment of 17 existing pumping stations in Kolonnawa,Dehiwala/Mt.Lavinia, and CMC service area.  It will improve urban environment and public health for about 1.5 million urban and suburb residents in the Greater Colombo area through improving marine and inland water. 

 In addition, the Project will strengthen institutional and operational capacity and project management capabilities of the Colombo Municipal Council through implementation support and comprehensive capacity building.

 The project will be implemented by the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) and the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) under the supervision of the Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils.  The project is scheduled to be completed by 31.12.2014.

 In this connection, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Planning, Dr P.B.Jayasundera, on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Country Director of Asian Development Bank, Mr. Richard W.A. Vokes signed the Loan Agreements today at the Ministry of Finance and Planning. The Asian Development Bank also entered into two Project Agreements with CMC and NWSDB.

Ministry of Finance & Planning, Colombo
18th  December 2009.

22/10/2009

US $ 70 million from Asian Development Bank to rehabilitate provincial roads in the Eastern and North Central Provinces

 The Asian Development Bank has provided financial assistance amounting to US$ 70 million for the Eastern and North Central Provincial Road     Project in Sri Lanka . The total investment cost of this project is US$ 78 million of which US$ 8 million will be contributed by the Government of Sri Lanka.                                                                       

The Project will rehabi li tate 150 km of provincial roads in the Eastern Province and 220 km of provincial roads in the North Central Province . The proposed rehabi li tation includes improvement of road pavements, bridges, drainage and replacement of culverts of the proposed roads. Some of the roads to be rehabilitated in the Eastern Province are Pankulum—Thiriyaya, Kuchchaveli—Kallampathai and Vavichenal access road. Among the roads proposed for rehabilitation in the North Central Province are Anuradhapura —Pemaduwa, Parasangaswewa—Katukeliyawa and Gonapathirawa—Akkara. The project will contribute to the overall performance of the road sector in the Eastern Province and the North Central Province by improving transport efficiency and expanding access to economic opportunities and public services. The project is expected to be completed by 2013.

 The Ministry of Local Government and Provincial Councils will be the executing agency of the project. The implementing agencies are North Central Provincial Road Development Authority and Eastern Provincial Road Development Department under the respective Provincial Councils.

 The Financing Agreement was signed today at the Ministry of Finance and Planning. Dr.P B. Jayasundera, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Planning signed the Agreement on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and the Country Director of Asian Development Bank, Mr. Richard W.A. Vokes signed on behalf of the Asian Development Bank. A Project Agreement with regard to the implementation arrangements of the Project was also entered into between the ADB and the relevant Provincial Councils and North Central Provincial Roads Development Authority.

Ministry of Finance & Planning, Colombo
22^nd October,  2009. 

22/10/2009

The World Bank provides Rs. 8.6 billion for the Second Community Development and Livelihood Improvement Project   

 World Bank has agreed to provide a concessionary credit facility of US$ 75 million (approximately Rs. 8.6 billion) for the Second Phase of the Community Development and Livelihood Improvement Project. The objective of the Second Phase is to enhance income and quality of life of poor households in the poorest Divisions of Sri Lanka through; empowering the poor, improving access of the poor to basic infrastructure and social services and providing support for productive activities.

 This project would reach one million people living in about 800 rural village communities in seven districts namely, Badulla, Moneragala, Hambantota, Kegalle, Nuwara Eliya, Ratnapura and Pollonnaruwa. The main components of the project will be Intra- Village Development, Inter-village Connectivity Development, Public, People and Private Sector Partnership and Convergence and Policy Support.

 Gemi Diriya Foundation will implement the project with the assistance of Samurdhi Authority and the Divisional Secretariats. The Ministry of Nation Building and Estate Infrastructure Development will act as the coordinating and monitoring Ministry of the Project and provide strategic guidance for the convergence with other national programmes, especially the Samurdhi and the Gama Neguma.

 Under the Phase I of the project, Rs.1953 mn has been invested in income generating activities and 1000 village infrastructure projects have been completed. A total of 187,000 Households have contributed in cash and labour to construct 2666 community projects which will benefit a total of 800,000 people. Value of this community contribution amounting to Rs. 381 mn. Activities of the Phase 1 will be completed by 31 March 2010.  

 The Financing Agreement was signed today at the Ministry of Finance and Planning by Dr. P.B. Jayasundera, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Planning on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and Ms. Naoko Ishii, Country Director for the World Bank in Sri Lanka on behalf of the World Bank.

17/09/2009

The Government of France Assistance for the Supply of Oxygen Concentrators, Operation Theatres and Medical Equipment to Tsunami Affected and Remote Hospitals in Sri Lanka and Establishment of a Saline Plant

The Government of France agreed to provide two concessionary credits of Euro 9.5 million for the Oxygen Concentrators Project and Euro 6.4 million for the establishment of Saline Plant (intravenous solution plant) under their Emerging Country Assistance Programme.

The purpose of Oxygen Concentrator project is to provide equipment to the Hospitals located in Tsunami affected districts of Galle, Matara, Hambantota, Kalutara, Trincomalee, Batticaloa, Mullative and Jaffna and remote districts of Moneragala, Ampara and Vavuniya.  Once the Oxygen concentrators and theatres are provided those hospitals can self-sustain in providing services to rural mass.  The present over crowding of base hospitals are also be eased with the expansion of facilities under this project.

The purpose of the establishing a Saline Plant is to produce Saline requirement of the country.  In third year of operation project will be able to produce country's annual requirement of 6 million doses, and make the country self sufficient in the Saline products.  At present country requirement of Saline are being imported at the cost of US$ 2.5 million a year and with the completion of the project foreign exchange spent on Saline can be retained in the country.

These two projects are financed under very concessional interest rate of 0.6% per annum with 20 years repayment period including 5 years grace period.

The signing of the Protocols for the two projects took place at the Ministry of Finance and Planning today.  Mr. Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Planning signed the protocols on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and H. E. the Ambassador for France Mr. Michel Lummaux signed on behalf of the Government of France.

Ministry of Finance & Planning, Colombo
17th September 2009.

7/08/2009

The Government of People’s Republic of China has agreed to provide two loan facilities in a sum of US $ 248 million

The Government of People’s Republic of China has agreed to provide two loan facilities in a sum of US $ 248 million for the Colombo – Katunayake Expressway project and US$ 65 million for the Bunkering Facilities & Tank Farm Project at Hambantota through the Export Import (Exim) Bank of China. 

The Colombo –Katunayake Expressway will be constructed by linking the Bandaranaike International Airport and the city of Colombo. This is a 25.8 km long 6/4 lane Expressway with three interchanges at Peliyagoda, Ja-ela and Katunayake. Once completed, the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway will provide efficient means of transport between the Bandaranaike International Airport and the city of Colombo while substantially reducing the travel time with enhanced safety and reducing the prevailing traffic congestion on existing Peliyagoda - Puttalam (A3) road.

The Bunkering Facilities & Tank Farm Project at Hambantota is a main part of the Chinese funded ongoing Hambantota Port Development project. This project will provide facilities to supply and store marine fuel, aviation fuel and LP gas and bunkering services for the vessels passing by Sri Lanka. The main components of the project are, construction of a bulk storage Tank Farm with a capacity of 82,000 cubic meters with mixing facilities of fuel oil, connection of pipe lines from tank farm to the oil terminal, loading /unloading facilities and other service connections. 

The two Loan Agreements were signed on 6th August 2009 in Beijing by Mr. Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary to the Treasury on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and Mr. Zhu Xinqiang, Vice President of the Exim Bank of China on behalf of the Exim Bank of China. Mr. Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary to the Treasury signed these Agreements while he was in Beijing for official discussions on future bilateral development assistance programme for Northern development and other priority projects of the country. 

Ministry of Finance & Planning, Colombo
7th August 2009.

29/06/2009

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide financial assistance of US$ 85 million (Approximately Rs 10 billion)

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide financial assistance of US$ 85 million (Approximately Rs 10 billion) for the implementation of Dry Zone Urban Water & Sanitation Project in Sri Lanka. 

The total investment cost of the project is US$ 113 million. The ADB assistance includes a concessional loan of US$ 59.78 million, a grant of US$ 23.22 million and a further grant amounting to US$ 2 million from the Netherlands Trust Fund for the Water Financing Partnership Facility. The Government of Sri Lanka contribution for the fund is US$ 28 million. 

The loan funds will be utilized for rehabilitation, expansion and development of water and sanitation infrastructure in the Northern Province and North Western Province. Of the total cost of the project, US$ 35 million will be allocated for the development of water and sanitation facilities in Vavniya and Mannar towns in the Northern Province and the balance for the water supply schemes in the North Western Province including Putalam and Chilaw towns. 

The project will also support decentralization of service delivery functions of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board to regional offices as well as the capacity development in water resources management, coordination and the project management. 

The project will be implemented by the National Water Supply & Drainage Board under the supervision of the Ministry of Water Supply & Drainage. The project is expected to be completed by 2013.

The loan and grant agreements for the project were signed today at the Ministry of Finance and Planning. Mr. Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary to the Ministry of Finance and Planning signed the agreements on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka and Mr. Xiaoyu Zhao, the Vice President of Asian Development Bank signed on behalf of the ADB. Mr. Zhao is in Sri Lanka for a 3 day visit to discuss ADB support for the reconstruction and development in the Northern Province as well as other ADB development programmes. A Project Agreement with regard to the implementation arrangement of the project was also entered into between the ADB and the National Water Supply & Drainage Board. 
ADB is the largest Multilateral Donor to Sri Lanka. The current ADB portfolio consists of 23 projects with a total value of US$ 2 billion. The ADB assistance to Sri Lanka is mainly for the development of infrastructure which includes roads, water supply and sanitation, power and port development. 

Ministry of Finance & Planning
Colombo 01
June 29, 2009

19/03/2009

Rs. 600 million Grant from Japan for the Food Security Project for Underprivileged Farmers

The Government of Japan has provided a grant of Japanese Yen 520 million (approximately Rs 600 million) under its food production grant aid program to purchase agricultural machineries and equipments of Japan for use by underprivileged farmers.  

The agricultural machineries and equipments will be made available to the farmers through Agrarian Service Centres of the Department of Agrarian Development, Agrarian Service Centres and Government Seed Farms through the Department of Agriculture. This will facilitate improving the quality of agricultural products of the targeted farmers. Since 1977, Sri Lanka has been a recipient of grant assistance under the food production program annually.  

Part of the value of the sales proceeds of the agricultural machineries and equipments will be deposited as counterpart funds which will be utilized for financing of projects aimed at economic and social development including the increase of food production. 

The signing of Exchange of Notes pertaining to the above grant took place today at the Ministry of Finance and Planning. Mr. Kaoru Shimazaki, Chargè ď Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of Japan in Sri Lanka signed on behalf of the Government of Japan.  A Grant Agreement was also signed between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Dr. Atsushi Kaneko, Chief Representative of JICA Sri Lanka Office signed on behalf of JICA. Mr. Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Planning signed both the Exchange of Notes and Grant Agreement on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka.

Ministry of Finance and Planning
Colombo. 
19 March 2009

19/03/2009

The Government of Australia agreed to provide AU $ 5.7 million 

The Government of Australia agreed to provide AU $ 5.7 million ( Approximately Rs. 405 million) as a grant to implement the Basic Education Support Programme through the Government of Sri Lanka/ UNICEF Country Programme Action Plan for 2008-2012. 

The overall objectives of the programme are to support universal completion of primary education and improve learning achievement by building a child friendly environment. The programme will assist children in 600 to 800 schools in six focal districts; i.e Nuwara Eliya, Badulla, Moneragala, Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Ampara. The key themes addressed under the programme are the quality of education and access to schooling by all children in the focal districts.

In this connection, two Memoranda of Understanding were signed today at the Treasury. The MOU between the Government of Australia and Government of Sri Lanka was signed by H.E Mrs. Kathey Klugman, High Commissioner for Australia and Mr. S. Abeysinghe, Secretary Ministry of Finance and Planning on behalf of the respective Governments. The other MOU between the Government of Australia and the UNICEF was signed by H.E Mrs. Kathey Klugman, Australian High Commissioner and Mr. Pilippe Duamelle, Representative, UNICEF Colombo on behalf of the Government of Australia and UNICEF respectively.


Ministry of Finance and Planning
Colombo. 
24 February 2009

29/01/2009

Japan Provides Grant Assistance of Rs. 460 million for improvement of Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital  (Phase II)

The Government of Japan has decided to provide a grant of Japanese Yen 390 million (approx. Rs 460 mn) under its grant aid scheme for improvement of Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital (Phase II). This grant will be provided in addition to the Japanese Yen 1803 million provided on 13^th May 2008 for construction of a new three storied building with a floor area of around 7,500 square meters to house the Obstetric Gynecology Operation Theatre, Pediatric Intensive Care Unit and Outdoor Patients Department (OPD).

The proceeds of this grant will be used for procurement of medical equipments and services from Japan for the buildings which are being constructed under the phase 1 of the grant. The existing hospital will be transformed into a fully fledged hospital with modern equipment and facilities through these improvements. Over 1.3 million people who are residing in the Anuradhapura District and adjoining districts of Vavuniya, Mannar, Trincomalee and Puttalam where the healthcare facilities are comparatively poor will be benefited from this project.

The project will be implemented by the Ministry of Healthcare and Nutrition and is expected to be completed by 2010.

The signing of Exchange of Notes pertaining to the above grant took place today at the Ministry of Finance and Planning. His Excellency Kiyoshi Araki, Ambassador of Japan in Sri Lanka signed on behalf of the Government of Japan while Mr. Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Planning signed on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka. A Grant Agreement also signed between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Ms. Yasuko Nishino, Senior Representative of JICA Sri Lanka Office signed on behalf of the JICA and Sumith Abeysinghe, Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Planning signed on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka.

29th January 2009 
Ministry of Finance and Planning