Business

Proposed coastal structures for Mawella Bay causing concern among investors

Published

4 years ago

2021/11/12

By Ifham Nizam

Tourism real estate investors recently expressed concern about some proposed coastal structures to be constructed in Mawella Bay.

They say the said constructions have not been decided on any scientific basis and are bound to cause massive destruction of the Mawella coastline.

An investor told The Island Financial Review that they are concerned as no Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) was done but only an Initial Environmental Examination (IEE), which is not sufficient considering the fact that all stakeholders in this ecologically fragile landscape were not consulted.

Their fears were compounded in September and the early part of October when the sea came right up to the mangrove level taking over large portions of the beach. This is just after one part of the proposed constructions, i.e. an anchorage, was built in the bay area.

Zander Combe – part owner Halcyon Mawella Hotel said that it is high time the government considered seriously protecting Sri Lanka’s tourism areas as it is imperative that they are protected for the future generations and the economic future of Sri Lanka.

“There is no scientific evidence that building these coastal structures has any positive effect on the environment, quite the opposite in fact, he added.

He also said investors in the tourism industry need to be assured that their investments are safe going forward and areas like Mawella need to be protected so that tourism can grow and the local communities can benefit from the upcoming boom in Sri Lanka tourism.

They also say there is no real need for an anchorage because most of the fishermen in the area pull their boats on to the beach, adding to the tourist attraction.

Mawella Bay up to now remains one of Sri Lanka’s beautiful untouched beaches. It is two kilometers long, pristine and well suited for high- end tourism. This is one of the few beaches on the island’s southern coast that is calm, serene and is swimmable all year round. Leaving aside the tourism potential, the changes seen on the beach since these constructions began, show signs of people living in the area also being negatively affected as a result of these coastal protective hard structures.

The real estate investors point to three reports done by experts on the damages caused to coastal areas by man- made hard structures. The 1988 report on ‘Coastal Area Management in Sri Lanka’ by Kem Lowry of the University of Hawaii and H.J.M. Wickremeratne of the Coast Conservation Dept. which says some of the structures built by the CCD were without any scientific understanding of the local coastal dynamics, resulting in the ‘solution’ to prevent erosion in one area causing considerable erosion elsewhere. The report cites several examples where this occurred and says these were probably done under public pressure to prevent erosion but proved to be disastrous.

A more recent research project carried out by the Asian Development Bank Institute (ADBI) in March 2021 titled, ‘Are coastal protective hard structures still applicable with respect to shoreline changes in Sri Lanka?’, refers to human influence on nature. It says the application of hard structures is least able to control coastal erosion in a large area because while it may be good for the site it is not helpful for adjacent areas. It says the environment will remain under its natural conditions as long as humans introduce no alterations.

While both reports point to hard structures doing more damage than good, let’s explore another report presented by Professor Charitha Pattiaratchi, Professor of Coastal Oceanography at the University of Western Australia, who has done his research specifically on the proposed hard structures for Mawella Bay.

The proposed structure includes a 300 meters long stone anchorage which is already built and two offshore breakwaters to mitigate erosion. While the anchorage is already causing some concern among bay area landowners and residents, there is a contrary view on the two breakwaters from the eminent coastal scientist.

He says the construction of the two 60m offshore breakwaters is not recommended because they are located in a region with high waves and current activity.

‘The region for the proposed breakwaters is a highly complex region in terms of hydrodynamics and sand transport. The breakwaters will retain sand in the lee which will interrupt the alongshore transport of sand. As the sand retained would be from regions along the ~1.5 km length of beach there is a strong probability of extreme erosion in other regions of the Bay, says Professor Pattiarachchi.

Reopening of the tourism industry is absolutely necessary to protect livelihoods and businesses and beach tourism has a lot of potential in helping the country grow and boost the economy. If these natural locations that can serve the people aren’t protected, the country is throwing away opportunities that it then has to build up from elsewhere.

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Business

Salesforce Startup Program targets Sri Lanka’s high-growth tech sector

Published

17 hours ago

2026/01/9

Thilina Walpola

Bhattacharya (L) and Madusanka at the launch

Salesforce, the world’s leading AI-powered CRM platform, is set to expand its presence in Sri Lanka with the launch of the Salesforce Startup Program by the end of January 2026, signalling growing confidence in the country’s technology-led growth potential.

The move comes as Sri Lanka consolidates its position as the second-largest startup ecosystem in South Asia after India, with software, data and artificial intelligence-driven ventures accounting for nearly 60 per cent of the national startup base.

Industry observers say this concentration places Sri Lanka at a decisive stage where global exposure and enterprise access could unlock the next phase of scale.

Under the programme, Sri Lankan startups will gain access to Salesforce’s global ecosystem, including AI-powered platforms, business and technical mentorship, joint go-to-market opportunities and connections to enterprise customers, enabling founders to build globally competitive solutions from Sri Lanka.

“Sri Lanka has developed a strong base of technical talent and entrepreneurial ambition that is increasingly visible regionally and globally,” said Arundhati Bhattacharya, President and CEO of Salesforce South Asia.

“Through the Salesforce Startup Program, we aim to help startups move beyond early momentum to global relevance while delivering long-term economic impact,” he added.

He also said the initiative builds on the success of its Startup Program in India and Singapore, which today supports over 435 startups, including more than 230 AI-first companies. Several participants have expanded across Asia and beyond by building products natively on the Salesforce platform.

Responding to queries, he said Sri Lanka is also emerging as an important enterprise market for Salesforce, with major corporates such as John Keells Holdings and Cinnamon Hotels adopting the platform to modernise customer engagement, sales, marketing and loyalty management operations.

In parallel, Salesforce is strengthening the country’s digital talent pipeline through its Trailhead learning ecosystem, with plans to skill nearly 1,000 learners over the next year via local workforce development partners and community-led cohorts.

Chamil Madusanka, Head of Salesforce Practice and Salesforce Architect, said the programme arrives at a critical juncture for Sri Lanka’s startup ecosystem.

“Sri Lankan founders are increasingly building AI, data and enterprise software solutions with global relevance,” Madusanka told The Island Financial Review.

“What many startups need is structured access to enterprise customers, global mentorship and market exposure. This initiative creates that bridge, enabling local companies to scale faster while remaining rooted in Sri Lanka.”

He said the Startup Program is designed to act as a connective platform, bringing together startups, enterprises, technology partners, universities and developer communities to accelerate collaboration and innovation.

By Ifham Nizam ✍️

Business

Good news on risen foreign reserves exerts buoyant impact on bourse

Published

17 hours ago

2026/01/9

Thilina Walpola

CSE activities were extremely bullish yesterday following Central Bank Governor Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe’s announcement that Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves had risen to US $ 6.8 billion in December 2025, up US$ 791 million from November 2025.

The Governor provided the estimated economic growth while announcing the Central Bank’s policy agenda for this year.

In December Sri Lanka received budget support loans from the Asian Development Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

Dr Nandalal Weerasinghe

Amid these developments both CSE indices moved upwards. The All Share Price Index went up by 226.81 points, while the S and P SL20 rose by 100.01 points. Turnover stood at Rs 12.3 billion with 12 crossings.

Top seven crossings that mainly contributed to the turnover were: Lee Hedges 18.2 million shares crossed to the tune of Rs 3.9 billion; its shares traded at Rs 416, Commercial Bank 2.1 million shares crossed for Rs 467.6 million; its shares traded at Rs 215, Ceylon Hotels 429,000 shares crossed for Rs 128.7 million; its shares traded at Rs 300, LB Finance 650,000 shares crossed for Rs 105 million; its shares sold at Rs 152.50, Ceylinco Holdings 31000 shares crossed for Rs 104.5 million; its shares traded at Rs 3400, Melstacorp 200,000 shares crossed tfor Rs 35.7 million; its shares sold at Rs 178.50 and Three Acres Farm 400,000 shares crossed to the tune of Rs 29.6 million; its shares fetched Rs 740.

In the retail market top seven companies that mainly contributed to the turnover were; Wealth Trust Securities Rs 1.17 billion (55.8 million shares traded), Commercial Bank Rs 509 million (2.4 million shares traded), HNB Rs 370 million (870,000 shares traded), ACL Cables Rs 303 million (three million shares traded), Prime Lands Residencies Rs 283 million (7.9 million shares traded), Lanka Realty Rs 227.5 million (4.7 million shares traded) and HNB Rs 218 million (332,000 shares traded). During the day 223.7 million share volumes changed hands in 55116 transactions.

Yesterday, investor interest in Wealth Trust and banking stocks led to higher activity levels, brokers said. Further, the real estate sector also performed well. Lanka Realty Investments PLC acquired 51 percent of the total number of shares in issue of Lee Hedges, CSE sources said. 13,057,595 ordinary voting shares were bought at Rs 216 each.

Yesterday the rupee opened at Rs 310.12/18 to the US dollar in the spot market, weaker from Rs 310.05/15 the previous day, dealers said, while bond yields opened marginally high.

By Hiran H Senewiratne ✍️

Business

Launch of monograph ‘Development: Not By Economics Alone’

Published

17 hours ago

2026/01/9

Thilina Walpola

The Gamani Corea Foundation (GCF) is pleased to announce the launch of the monograph Development: Not By Economics Alone by Dr. Nimal Sanderatne, Emeritus Chairperson of the Foundation. The foreword to the publication has been written by Dr. Godfrey Gunatilleke, one of Sri Lanka’s most eminent development economists. The launch ceremony will be held on Friday, 9th January 2026, at 4.00 p.m. at the Horton Lodge.

In this monograph, Dr. Sanderatne argues that development cannot be understood through economic indicators alone. He emphasizes that the quality of human capital depends not only on knowledge and skills acquired through formal education, but also on deeper, non-formal processes embedded in a society’s culture and value systems. These influence human behaviour, shaping work ethics, attitudes to work and leisure, capacity for teamwork, preferences between short- and long-term goals, and patterns of saving and consumption.

Dr. Sanderatne is a distinguished economist and academic, holding degrees from the Universities of London, Saskatchewan, and Wisconsin, and was conferred the Doctor of Science (Honoris Causa) by the University of Peradeniya in 2004.