Features
The Thriposha Production Plant – Its Construction 40 years ago
Jatal Mannapperuma, Ph.D.
Kandy, Sri Lanka
jatalm@live.com
In the rankings of global child malnutrition that Sri Lanka is placed sixth globally and second in South Asia was headline news in most of our national newspapers recently. Disruption of the distribution of Thriposha caused by shortsighted political decisions in the recent past was mentioned as one of the possible causes for this significant increase in malnutrition in Sri Lanka in recent decades.
The production and distribution of Thriposha was conceived and implemented several decades ago by a collection of dedicated professionals who were aware of the consequences of childhood malnutrition on Sri Lanka’s future. The construction of the Thriposha plant in 1978/79 was a major milestone and a key factor for the success of the Thriposha programme for more than 40 years. This article written by the project engineer responsible for the construction of the plant highlights some key events during that memorable period.
Early History of the Thriposha Programme
Every citizen of Sri Lanka was provided with 500 kcal per capita per day through the rice ration scheme started during the World War II era. This provided adequate energy for needy citizens for several decades but did not, however, include other necessary nutrients. Studies at the Medical Research Institute (1950-1973) highlighted the deficiency of animal proteins, several vitamins and minerals in the diet among the low-income population.
Sri Lanka recognized the importance of correcting malnutrition caused by poverty and initiated its first comprehensive island-wide nutrition supplementary food intervention programme in 1973. Thriposha, meaning three nutrients, was the name given to this programme. Its objective was to provide a supplementary food providing all the essential nutrients to pregnant and lactating mothers and under-nourished infants and children aged 6 to 60 months in the lower socio-income group.
A blend of wheat and soy (WSB) from the US Government was used at the beginning of the programme. It was packaged into printed plastic bags of 750 grammes each for distribution at two bags per month per recipient. CARE (Cooperative for American Relief Everywhere) Sri Lanka office managed the programme. A year later in 1974, local ingredients were added, replacing 20% of WSB with cooked sorghum. The rapid increase in the number of Thriposha recipients and the difficulty of sorghum processing soon became a problem. In 1976, low-cost extrusion cooking was introduced by CARE and USAID.
To process sorghum flour, a biscuit had to be prepared first, which was then baked and powdered before being blended with WSB. In the new process, a mix of 70% maize and 30% soybean was milled and extruded with added moisture, in effect partially cooking it. The product was thereby made easily digestible for the target recipients. The ground product was blended with 3% non-fat powdered milk and 1 % vitamin-mineral mix to make it a complete food.
Project Engineer, Thriposha programme
‘Priyani Mills’ in Kundasale was a rice mill and one of the few with cleaning and destoning equipment at the time. The Thriposha production pilot plant was housed in this mill because the paddy cleaning equipment there could be used to clean maize and soybeans before extrusion.
The Paddy Marketing Board (PMB), supplied maize and soybean purchased from farmers. A problem arose when ‘Priyani Mills’ claimed that approximately 10% was lost in the cleaning process, which the PMB considered excessive. A test cleaning operation of the mill to determine the actual cleaning loss was agreed upon and I was assigned to conduct this test. I had initially joined the PMB as an Assistant Engineer. After completing a Master’s Degree programme on post-harvest technology in the United States, I returned to the PMB and was working there as a Senior Engineer at this time.
After completing the test, I prepared a short hand-written report and gave it to Mr. Justin R. Jackson, the Thriposha Programmme Director who was also present during the entire testing process. The report had a flowchart of the equipment and losses at each point and my observations thereon. Mr. Jackson read the report, was visibly surprised by its quality and expressed curiosity about my professional background. The conversation that followed surprised him even more and he earnestly pressed me to join them to help build the proposed integrated Thriposha Processing Plant to increase production. He gave me a great deal of literature on the Thriposa programme to convince me of the national importance of the project.
The literature on the project was very convincing and Dr. Preethi Wijekoon’s description of the improvements in severely malnourished kids after a few months of Thriposha ration was even more so. My eventual decision to join the project involved a secondment from the Ministry of Agriculture to the Ministry of Health, and this bureaucratic process took some time. Pending the secondment, I started visiting the CARE office in order to help with planning for the construction of the plant.
Location of the Plant
Mr. Jackson, who as the director of the Thriposha Programme, had placed an advertisement in the newspapers seeking five acres of land for the proposed Thriposha plant. He had received about 30 offers from all over the Island and asked me to evaluate them. After a quick look at these offers, I suggested to him that we reverse the approach. We should look for a site that met our requirements and then set about securing it. After a weekend of thinking over my suggestion, he approved of it. That the new plant should be located in a maize and soy bean growing area, was the view of many. I conducted a comprehensive transportation study to minimize the cost of transport of raw materials to the factory and that of the product and by-product to the consumers. My post-graduate study of ‘Operations Research’ in the United States was very helpful for this analysis.
The study concluded that locating the plant in the Colombo district was optimal. Thriposha was mostly distributed by train because it was the least expensive mode of distribution. A railway siding at the plant would thus make rail transport very convenient. This meant that we needed a site with a railway frontage of, at least, 1,000 feet. The director wanted to hire a helicopter and look around Colombo to locate a suitable site. I wanted, instead, to travel by slow trains along three railway lines and take a look before hiring a helicopter.
Equipped with a one-inch map of the areas, I travelled by train to Panadura and Gampaha but these trips proved unfruitful. My third trip was to Negombo. A mile or so past Kandana I spotted a neglected coconut land with the railway frontage we required. I got down at the nearest railway stop in Ja-Ela and walked back towards the land I had spotted. This land not only had a railway frontage it also faced the Colombo-Negombo (A3) highway, an added advantage for our project.
At this site, I met the owner, Mr. James Felton de Alwis Seneviratne, a lawyer and classmate of former prime minster Mr. S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike at St. Thomas’ College. I explained to him the importance of the Thriposha project and how and why his land was the only one that met all our requirements. With the approval of Mr. Jackson who was delighted with the site, we were able to persuade Mr. Seneviratne to part with the land having provided him with adequate compensation for it.
Civil Works
We started planning for the construction of the plant even before the site was finalized. Edwards Reid and Begg, a firm with the foremost architects at the time was hired, because we wanted the best. A little known fact is that Mr. Geoffrey Bawa was the chief architect of the Thriposha Plant. With Geoffrey at the helm, engineers led by Dr. K. Poologasundaram completed the design and prepared the drawings and tender documents. We spent many hours with Geoffrey, hours that are vividly etched in my memory.
At the heart of the plan was a 34,000 sq.ft building with space for a packaging section, machinery, raw materials as well as the finished product. Geoffrey was an admirer of the flowering Esala tree (Cassia Fistula) and wanted a line of trees planted on the premises. I made a special trip to Anuradhapura, collected these plants with the help of my colleagues in the PMB and fulfilled his request.
We met with several leading construction companies that submitted tenders and eventually selected, N. J. Cooray Builders, not the cheapest but one of the best. Building construction started and progressed smoothly with over one hundred workers employed in the construction. This brought Mr. Herbert Cooray into our close-knit circle. A former leader of the socialist student movement, then owner of a construction company and founder of Jetwing Hotels, Mr. Herbert Cooray was a person I will never forget. He was keeping the construction company going mainly to help the faithful employees of his father.
Railway Siding
Railway siding was the biggest ancillary item of the project. Several discussions with the General Manager of Railways, Mr. Peris and his staff, were held to initiate the work. This was to be the first siding in the colour signal tracks and there was some initial reluctance on that score. However, once the work started everything fell into place. We helped Sri Lanka Railways transport supplies as they were sometimes short of vehicles. I still remember a visit we made to the Boossa railway yard to select sleepers.
The logistics of the siding construction was meticulously planned. There was only one break around midnight without trains on this stretch. Major items like rails, sleepers and ballast were brought by train and unloaded during this precious time interval. I visited the site several times with railway officers during these midnight unloading operations. The siding area was levelled and compacted using a bulldozer. The rail track was laid and connected to the main line.
The track was lifted and ballast was set under the rails. Colour signals were installed and connected to the central control room at Maradana. The Director of CARE, Sri Lanka, Mr. George Taylor and I visited the site on a Sunday morning, with a six pack of beer and waited for the first train to enter the site. It was a long wait but the train finally arrived, delayed by a man committing suicide on the track on its way!
Installation of Machinery
The Thriposha production line was planned at the Colorado State University by Mr. Ronald Triblehorn. He also helped CARE, New York office to purchase machinery. Soon we started receiving machinery and there were altogether 75 crates in 55 shipments. We carefully catalogued and stored the crates in a warehouse in Colombo awaiting completion of the civil works.
Dr. Beatrice de Mel of the Medical Research Institute was the moving spirit behind the distribution of Thriposha. She told me more than once during site visits, that the project reminds her of her visits to the Lady Ridgeway Hospital site as a little child with her father, Prof. L. O. Abeyratne, a pioneer in child health care in Sri Lanka. She continued to mentor the project for several decades.
Alongside construction activities we called for proposals from suitable firms who could take over the future management of the plant. We selected Ceylon Tobacco Company out of the several proposals we received. They made a very attractive offer thoughtfully planning to employ several hundred workers laid-off with full pay after a strike. I discovered that these workers included many with engineering skills and proposed that we select a team from among these workers to install the machinery. This was a departure from the original plan to use a general contractor for installation and this saved a substantial sum of money to the project. It also produced a team of workers proud to work in the plant they helped build themselves.
When the roof of the building was barely complete, we started moving crates of machinery and prepared to assemble and install the machinery. We soon discovered that the processing line was several feet longer than in the drawings and could not be accommodated in the building. We changed the plans and realigned some machines to fit inside the building space.
The installation of machinery was completed in about three months. Ron (Triblehorn) came from the United States to lead the start-up of plant machinery. Training plant operators and Thriposha production became a part of the start-up. Thriposha was packed in kraft paper bags of 750 grammes each and stored before dispatch in the product storage area. Thereafter the products were distributed throughout the country in trucks. Transportation of Thriposha bags by train, followed. This symbolized the successful completion of a job undertaken and I returned to the Paddy Marketing Board to manage the Rice Processing Development Centre (the present Institute of Post-Harvest Technology – IPHT) in Anuradhapura in January 1980.
Opening of the Plant
About nine months later I received a call from George Taylor (the Director of CARE, Sri Lanka) to join him at the opening of the plant on September 19, 1980. I gladly accepted the invitation but it was only when I met him at the plant that he told me I have to guide the prime minister, Mr. R. Premadasa, through the plant. Since I was not formally attired, I borrowed a tie from the plant manager, Rohan Dias, prior to welcoming the prime minister. Thereafter I showed him around the premises answering his many questions in the process. When I showed him cleaned maize grains coming out of the gravity table separator, he asked me, ‘Can you clean people like this?’ Of his many questions that day, the latter is the one I remember best.
Past, Present and Future
We received many compliments for the manner in which we got the plant built and running. A USAID review team that visited us towards the end of my tenure commented that this was the best USAID project they had seen anywhere! I also remember a man approaching my vehicle at the Ja-Ela railway crossing and complimenting me on my commitment to the project. The Thriposha plant has completed 42 years of successful operation. It was a pleasure to read the recent news items on the project, its improvements and successes.
The food extrusion technology we introduced has been adopted by many others and many similar products with similar names have entered the market, as for instance, “Suposha” a product of the Thriposha plant, which has become a commercial success. The plant remains in good hands. It is with gratitude I recall the work of the technical officers, technicians and workers who toiled tirelessly to complete the Thriposha plant and I hope it will continue to help produce healthy Sri Lankans for many more years to come.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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