LST forum on development issues titled “Sri Lanka’s Road to Sustainable Development”
View(s):The Colombo-based Law and Society Trust (LST) is organising a forum titled “Sri Lanka’s Road to Sustainable Development” next week aimed at addressing several important issues pertaining to post war development in Sri Lanka.
The August 22 forum in Colombo at the International Centre for Ethnic Studies will address issues related to urban development, land and development, and social justice and development in its three main sessions.
The panellists include parliamentarians, Government stakeholders and experts who are engaged on the issues of development will lead the discussion on a rights based approach to development, the LST said in a media statement.
The forum also will attempt to delineate pro-active measures aimed at revenue generation, interim measures for the citizens affected, as well as long term sustainability measures in relation to the development drive. “As we experience a boom in infrastructure, it is perhaps important for the citizens to understand the mechanism behind the scenes and how we can improve it to cater to all citizens at all income levels,” it said.
‘Sri Lanka’s Road to Sustainable Development’ forum carry these concepts and aim at encouraging more research and development.
Since the end of the war in 2009, Sri Lanka is assertively seeking to reshape its socio-economic topography in line with its ambitious 10-Year Development Framework that demands the holistic re-casting of the island as a modern economic and industrial hub, the organisers said.
LST said the current development process carries many policies that are in place to safeguard the rights of the people affected such as the Involuntary Resettlement Policy (NIRP 2001), the National Action Plan for the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights (NAPPPHR 2005) and the National Policy Framework for Social Integration (NPFSI 2012).
LST noted that in relation to the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport and the Hambantota International Harbour, returns from the enormous investments are yet to fully reveal themselves, with little international interest expressed, even in terms of establishing airline routes, let alone FDIs.
“Where these mega projects have been presented to the public with great promise, the slow return on investments coupled with the lack of interim measures to mitigate lags in operational and investment aspects, particularly in terms of returns to those who were affected at ground level, must be addressed, “ it said.
LST said that as Sri Lanka surges forward with development projects, it seems to be leaving behind its low-income citizens who are neither informed nor properly compensated as indicated in research work above.
“Since Singapore seems to be a model of sorts to Sri Lanka, we should perhaps take their example of evaluating each project at different levels with regard to performance and delivery. Thus, proper planning, transparent policies and honest evaluation seem key in both economic development and human centered approaches towards development. Cross-cutting initiatives that could provide vocational training, for these industries some of which could translate within many industries in the pipeline could also be a starting point for Sri Lanka. As the Sri Lankan public claim of livelihood loss such approaches may soften the blow of having to migrate from one lifestyle to another. While many speculate of having to choose either the development or the people, this could not be further from the truth,” LST said.