Financial Times

Rebuilding plan to give birth to 15 new towns
The action plan to rebuild infrastructure damaged or destroyed by the tsunami involves constructing 15 new townships on the southern and eastern coasts along with associated amenities at a cost $3.5 billion.

The three-year plan was presented last week to the disaster management committee comprising Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse, Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and heads of political parties represented in Parliament as foreign nations granted nearly US $ 400 million for reconstruction.

The plan, prepared by the Task Force for Rebuilding the Nation (TAFREN) with inputs from ministries, includes measures to revive the tourism industry by offering tax concessions for tourist hotels that were destroyed and for cottage industries affected by the tsunami.

TAFREN chairman and Presidential Advisor Mano Tittawella said the rebuilding effort would provide people with more modern and better infrastructure. Under the plan, 12 large towns, 20 medium towns and 30 small towns are to be rebuilt along the tsunami-ravaged seaboard.

Projects already planned and budgeted to provide water, electricity and other amenities could be re-organised to cover the damage caused in the tsunami-affected areas.

The action plan includes aid to affected people in the form of a start up allowance of Rs.5,000 per family given through People's Bank branches using the tsunami relief coupon with the aim of restoring normal life as soon as possible.

The action plan will be implemented in three phases - emergency repairs, rehabilitation and reconstruction and improvement and modernisation. The rebuilding effort will see the emergence of a whole new set of roads, rail tracks, electricity, water supply and sanitation and telecommunications systems as well as homes, schools, and hospitals.

It will also ensure the rebuilding of damaged tourist hotels, industries, courts and harbours. The cost of restoring the road network alone is estimated at US$ 808 million with emergency repairs costing $15 million in the first phase, while phase two rehabilitation and reconstruction will cost $ 153 million and improvements and additions under phase three $ 640 million.

Meanwhile Treasury Secretary Dr. P.B. Jayasundera told a news conference that the government has already received nearly US $ 400 million from other countries and that such aid could increase to nearly US $ 700 million during the year.

The Asian Development Bank has pledged US $ 100 million and the World Bank US $ 100 million this year while India has pledged US $ 23 million and Japan another US $ 150 million for the rebuilding effort.

The IMF has also approved debt relief to the tune of US $ 250 million. The government last week signed an agreement with Japan for Rs. 8 billion under Japanese Non-Project Grant Aid for relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction in tsunami-affected areas.

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