The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) announced that social media reports on the purported sale of Uchchamunai Island in Kalpitiya to a foreign country are completely false.
The SLTDA also said that the island had not been sold and only a 30-year lease agreement has been signed with a foreign investor to attract more foreign direct investments to the country. According to the Tourism Act No. 38 of 2005, the SLTDA is vested with powers to lease out its owned lands to potential investors for the planned and sustainable development and maintenance of tourist hotels and resorts.
The SLTDA has continued to work on attracting foreign and domestic investments from the past and it is responsible to the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) in case of any delays in signing lease agreements for already approved projects.
The SLTDA has obtained all the necessary approvals to lease the property to a foreign investor for 30 years in accordance with the Land Acquisition Policy following the proper procedure. “The lease rental is based on the value provided by the Department of Government Valuation in October 2020 on which the agreement was finalised. US $ 417.5 million is the project cost estimated by the investor for a tourism project that will be implemented in several stages. However, the signing of the agreement was delayed on the part of the investor company.
The investor's representative arrived in Sri Lanka on May 8 to sign the lease agreement and it was signed on May 11between the two parties, the SLTDA said.
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