News
Wide ranging plans to develop small islands in the Northern province
View(s):- Economic potential for tourism industry, and projects to generate foreign exchange
By Chris Kamalendran
The Sunday Times learned that the proposals had been shared among experts and intellectuals to seek their views on the proposal which had been submitted by the Urban Development Ministry.
According to the Cabinet paper, small islands ranging in the extent between one km and 64km number about 60, though there were more than 100 islands. Currently the islands come under the subject scope of the Coast Conservation Department.
Kayts island in the north
As an interim provision, the Cabinet paper proposes a Board of Management for a three year period. The Board would be chaired by the Coast Conservation Department Director General with the participation of 11 other institutions.
The institutions are: The Marine Environment Protection Authority (MEPA), the Tourism Promotion Bureau, the Sri Lanka Navy, the Sri Lanka Coast Guard, Geological Survey and Mines Bureau, the Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority (SLSEA), the Urban Development Authority (UDA), the Industries Ministry, the Wildlife Conservation Department, the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) and the Land Commission General’s Department.
It had also been proposed to have an advisory board consisting of experts. The proposal also said most of the islands were underutilised and migratory fishing activities took place in some of the islands.
The Cabinet paper noted there was potential to obtain a great contribution to the economic development of the country due to the geographic location of these islands, and many island nations in the world use small islands to implement projects that generate foreign exchange and government revenue.
The Cabinet paper had also identified the economic potential for the tourism industry, mineral resource extraction and renewable energy projects.
The paper noted that many countries promote tourism in islands and many tourist attractions were available in these locations. It added that public and private institutions could start projects in these islands.
The best way to say that you found the home of your dreams is by finding it on Hitad.lk. We have listings for apartments for sale or rent in Sri Lanka, no matter what locale you're looking for! Whether you live in Colombo, Galle, Kandy, Matara, Jaffna and more - we've got them all!