Sri Lankan govt. gets additional funding for Kaluganga Development Project
The Finance Ministry of Sri Lanka states that the government has signed a loan agreement for an additional US$ 18 million from OPEC Fund for the Kaluganga Development Project.
A statement issued by the Finance Ministry states that the Kaluganga Development Project is currently being implemented by the Ministry of Mahaweli Development and Environment with the financial assistance of Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID).
Kaluganga Reservoir has a capacity of 265 million cubic meters (MCM) of water and will divert 100 MCM annually to Moragahakanda Reservoir.
Under this project, it is expected to develop new irrigable lands of nearly 3,000 hectares in the Kaluganga Basin.
Unforeseen geological conditions in the foundations and necessary design revisions have led to price increase and it is noted that the funds available from the above donors is not sufficient to complete the balance work of the project.
OSL take:
It is encouraging that international lending agencies have confidence in Sri Lankan economy to agree to additional funding for development projects. The signing of the agreement between the government of Sri Lanka and OPEC indicates the level of confidence the international community has on the country’s development agenda and its repayment capacity. Investors considering entering into Sri Lanka to invest in projects in various sectors could go ahead without any hesitance given the possible assistance from foreign funding agencies as well.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/17/10/2017/Z_3 |