China will assist Sri Lanka to become a Singapore: Envoy

China will to continue to provide development assistance to Sri Lanka to uplift the island nation to the standard of Singapore within the next 15 years, Chinese Ambassador Yi Xianliang said.

Speaking at an event held on Monday in Tangalle, Ambassador Yi said Sri Lanka is a very special friend to China and this is the 60th anniversary of the friendship between the two countries.

The Ambassador said Sri Lankan and Chinese people are well aware of the Chinese Sri Lanka Rubber Rice Agreement and the pact led to a strong friendship between the two nations.

The envoy recalled that during the past few years China provided most of its international assistance to Sri Lanka and said the Asian powerhouse is also committed to the development of infrastructure in Sri Lanka.

The Chinese ambassador said that development is a must for the Sri Lankans and people must cooperate with the government to develop the country.

He said that China will assist Sri Lanka to establish a technology university in the South with the objective to develop the technical aspects of the fisheries sector as well as other sectors and enhance the technical knowledge of the Sri Lankan youth.

Ambassador Yi Xianliang said under the China-Sri Lanka Friendship Foundation, China provides about 1300 scholarships to Sri Lankan students now and in the future the number of scholarships will be increased to 2000.

“We have also agreed to initiate a housing project to provide houses for the needy fishing community in the area,” he said.

The Ambassador said China will continue to provide assistance to develop the South similar to Shanghai city in China.

The event held today at the Deepankara Model Primary School in Tangalle was organised by the State Minister of Fisheries Dilip Wedaarachchi to distribute school equipment to thousand school children in the district of Hambantota. The equipment worth Rs. 1.8 million were donated by China.

Speaking at the event, the State Minister said China is a traditional friend of Sri Lanka. He said the Chinese government has agreed to construct 100 houses for the fisheries community in the Galgoda Cemetery area.

Minister Wedaarachchi further noted that the Chinese government heavily contributed to the development of the Expressway, Hambantota Port and many other infrastructure facilities but they were not managed efficiently by the then government.

He asserted that the Government will carry forward the development activities cooperating with China regardless of opposition objections and claims.