Sri Lanka will further strengthen economic ties with China as Cabinet granted approval this week for the government to enter into a MoU with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) of China; an agency which exercises broad administrative and planning control over the Chinese Economy to make ‘Investments on Cooperation and Production Capacity’.
According to Development Strategies and International Trade Deputy Minister Sujeewa Senasinghe, China had indicated that Sri Lanka was their second most preferred place for investments.
Addressing the weekly Cabinet media briefing yesterday, he explained that these MoU would be most beneficial in areas like developing the Hambantota Port and the Colombo Financial City.
“The Chinese have said they would invest close to USD 6 billion in the next 3-4 years in Sri Lanka and through this we hope to create 2,500 new export industries,”Senasinghe added.
The Government of Sri Lanka earlier, during the Prime Minister’s visit to China in April of last year had entered into a MoU with the Government of China over an agreement on “comprehensive implementation of investment, economic and technological cooperation”.
The NDRC building on this MoU has in turn expressed its willingness to enter into another MoU with Sri Lanka on ‘Investment on Cooperation and Production Capacity’. The Sri Lankan government has stated that the MoU will deliver the country with great potential under the framework of China’s 21st Century Maritime Silk Road initiative.
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