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27 official deals with China, unspecified number on the sidelines
View(s):A large, unspecified number of other agreements were signed this week between China and Sri Lanka in addition to the 27 accords that were entered into in the presence of the Presidents of the two countries, authoritative government sources said.“There was another list of agreements that were concluded on the sidelines of the visit,” said a senior bureaucrat, requesting anonymity. “Various ministries entered into agreements with the Chinese but we are not aware of what they are.” He said this was one of the largest volumes of agreements ever handled and signed during a single bilateral visit.
An External Resources Department (ERD) official said, “Nobody knows the totality of the agreements”. But he said those involving loans were cleared by the ERD. “The others may not have come to us,” he added. In June, Treasury Secretary P.B. Jayasundera issued a three-page circular to administrative heads of ministries, provincial councils, departments, local government institutions, public corporations, statutory boards and district secretariats.
It warned them against formulating project proposals for obtaining foreign funds without following due process, including prior consultations with his ministry.
“If they are entering into Memorandums of Understanding, they must submit those agreements within time to the Ministry to get necessary approvals,” said the senior bureaucrat earlier quoted. “But I heard that some of the agreements were contract agreements and not financing agreements.”
“The modality of Chinese funding is different,” he added. “First they enter into a contract and, based on the contract value, the government can submit a loan application.” These other agreements were not signed at the bilateral signing ceremony that took place on Tuesday.
“I don’t know about contract agreements,” said the ERD official. “They never came before the Finance Ministry.” Bureaucrats said there had been concern about how the Chinese Government expected agreements to be concluded very fast. It had been a challenge to finalise even the official set.
Another well-placed source said there had been no time to secure Cabinet approval on each and every document. However, the 27 official agreements had all been cleared by the respective ministries and ministers, and the Attorney General’s Department.
“There is a procedure governing the conclusion of agreements,” another highly-placed official said. He, too, did not wish to be named.
“It includes clearance from the secretaries of the respective ministries, the Attorney General’s Department, the External Affairs Ministry’s legal division and Cabinet.”
“The Chinese were really pushing and trying to set the agenda,” he continued. “Some agreements were being negotiated till the last minute.”
One of these was reportedly the “Supply, Operate and Transfer” agreement for the Container Terminal of the Hambantota Port Development Project Phase II. It was the first time that such a deal was even made public.
Sri Lanka Ports Authority Chairman Priyath B. Wickrama signed on behalf of Sri Lanka. Signing for China were China Communication Construction Company Ltd (CCCC) President Chen Fenjian and China Merchants Group Chairman Li Jianhong.