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The Court of Appeal has permitted a writ application filed by the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka (WNPS) to proceed, and has directed that notices be issued on the Respondents. The application challenges the approvals granted for the Phase 1 Extension of the Thambapavani Wind Power Project on Mannar Island.

The order was made on 31 August, after the application was supported before the Court on 9, 16, and 27 July and 3 and 4 August. The Court has ordered the objections of the noticed Respondents to be filed, whilst notices are due to be served on the parties who have now taken over the work of the former Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB).

The WNPS contends that the relevant authorities failed to comply with mandatory provisions of the law when approvals were granted for the project, and that this failure risks irreversible consequences both for the communities living on Mannar Island and for its fragile ecosystem in an area regarded as one of Sri Lanka’s most ecologically important regions.

The application seeks judicial intervention in respect of what the WNPS considers to be serious violations of regulations made under Sri Lanka’s environmental laws. The Society contends that the wind turbines are being constructed in unapproved locations, and that the number of turbines is well in excess of the number approved by the relevant regulatory authority. It challenges the implementation of the project on the basis that the statutory procedures required under, among other legislation, the National Environmental Act and the Coast Conservation and Coastal Resource Management Act were not complied with.

The Society has raised particular concern over the failure to adhere to the findings of the Avifaunal Study commissioned by the Project Proponent itself. According to the WNPS, that study identified certain areas within the project zone as presenting a ‘very high’ risk to bird populations. The WNPS alleges that, despite these findings, turbines have been installed in areas identified as high-risk or prohibited zones. The Society says this could increase the threat to migratory and endangered bird species and intensify pressure on an already sensitive ecosystem, with significant risks also to sensitive coastal habitats and to the livelihoods of the communities living in the area.

Mannar Island forms part of the Central Asian Flyway, a major migratory route used by millions of birds each year. The island has been recognised by national and international experts as a Key Biodiversity Area and as a site of global importance for water birds. It also lies close to several protected areas, including the Vankalai Sanctuary, the Vidataltivu Nature Reserve, and the Adam’s Bridge Marine National Park.

The proceedings therefore seek to place before the Court the question of whether the project has been implemented in accordance with Sri Lanka’s environmental laws and the safeguards intended to protect environmentally sensitive areas.

The WNPS has stressed that it fully supports renewable energy and Sri Lanka’s transition to cleaner sources of power. Its challenge is directed at the failure of the authorities and regulators to comply with the law and with the recommendations of the regulatory authorities themselves. The Society maintains that renewable energy projects must be located and developed in accordance with environmental safeguards and the law, and that the case is ultimately about ensuring that Sri Lanka’s renewable energy transition proceeds in a manner that is both legally compliant and environmentally sustainable, particularly in locations of exceptional ecological importance.

The WNPS was represented by President’s Counsel Farzana Jameel, with Attorneys-at-Law Prashanthi Mahindaratne, Dilumi de Alwis, Manisha Dissanayake, and Minaz Izzadeen, instructed by Attorney-at-Law Dilini Jayasuriya.

Few infrastructure assets in South Asia carry as much strategic weight as the East Container Terminal (ECT) at the Port of Colombo. Sitting on one of the busiest transhipment routes between Asia and Europe, it ideally should be a dependable earner of foreign exchange for a country still recovering from the worst economic crisis in its history. Yet, now more than a decade old and owned and developed by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA), it is still not operating as intended despite the substantial public investment already committed.

Economically, the ECT is a case study in how inadequate design, fragmented procurement, and unstable leadership turn productive capital into stranded capital. Every month of further delay adds to a cost that Sri Lanka as a whole must bear due to the consequences of weak decision-making.

A decade of indecision

The first phase of the ECT was completed in mid-2015. For five years, it did not carry the container operations it was built for, denying SLPA the earnings expected from the completed investment.

Compared to other terminals, CICT began construction in December 2011 and operations in July 2013, while CWIT began construction in early 2022 and its first phase of operations in April 2025. As different, their timelines underline the extent of the ECT delay.

Between October 2014 and February 2021, the Cabinet and related bodies took many decisions on the terminal. They awarded a crane contract and rescinded it, endorsed a joint venture and then a public-private partnership before abandoning both, signed a trilateral Memorandum of Cooperation with India and Japan in 2019, and finally decided in February 2021 that SLPA would develop and operate the terminal as a wholly owned facility. Reversals could have been defensible politically, but it was SLPA that carried the idle asset and the interest on the loan. The cost of indecision was not the cost of any single bad choice but the value of the time lost between choices.

Decisions that were SLPA’s own

Delays cannot be blamed on Cabinet reversals alone when the authority also made choices. These choices and failures can be salvaged. The SLPA management and its engineers did not prepare a complete, integrated design for the terminal before committing to contracts, one that settled the ground conditions, the yard and gate layout, the operating model, the equipment mix and the systems interfaces together. The terminal was instead designed in pieces as it was built.

In 2021, SLPA set aside both a design consultant and a design-and-build contract, partly because it had no marine soil data for the site, and chose a measure-and-pay contract under which the cost of unforeseen conditions falls on SLPA itself. Soft cohesive soils required additional improvement, and the contract price rose by around 80%.

Equipment was not staggered. The cranes arrived in 2024 and 2025, while the civil works, originally due in January 2025, slipped through three extensions of time (EOTs) to July 2026, with a fourth (EOT 4) requested but not yet granted.

Automation readiness was neglected. A semi-automated terminal needs a stock of critical spare parts, trained maintenance technicians, a proper transfer of technology from the suppliers, and tested operating procedures before its first automated move. There is no evidence that a full census of the spare parts delivered with the 52 cranes has been carried out against the contract schedules, or that the parts have been checked for completeness, condition and storage.

An interface gap was left open for years. The Equipment Control Interface Database (ECI DB), without which the terminal cannot run in semi-automated mode, was first raised in August 2023. The equipment supplier declared it outside its scope, the Attorney General advised arbitration, and more than two and a half years later, the component had still not been procured.

Straddle carriers have been tendered five times since 2021, and four of those processes were cancelled. In the third round, an award that Cabinet had approved was suspended within weeks, reportedly on instruction, and later cancelled after a court challenge by the losing bidder.

People and layouts were left unresolved. The 467 operational and engineering posts identified in 2023 still await approval from the Department of Management Services; there is no Chief Operating Officer, and the proposed operating company awaits the Attorney General’s response. The entrance road and building layouts were changed after construction had begun. From these decisions we observe an authority that finds difficult to plan, manage contracts and stick to decisions.

Idle cranes and the weakest link

A container terminal is a tightly integrated system, whose output depends on its weakest component, a logic captured by Michael Kremer’s O-ring theory of production. Phase II was split into three packages, civil works, container handling equipment and the Terminal Management System, with no single party accountable for how they fit together.

All 12 ship-to-shore (STS) cranes and forty automated rail-mounted gantry (ARMG) cranes have been delivered. Yet four STS cranes are unutilised, only fourteen ARMGs have been commissioned, and the ARMG fleet in its entirety is reportedly idle. A trial at that stage, operating without straddle carriers, achieved only 7.8 moves per crane per hour. The World Bank’s port performance benchmarks suggest over 20.

The ARMGs illustrate the cost of poor sequencing. As the ECT yard was not ready, the cranes were unloaded elsewhere in the port, and some were used there temporarily. They must now be moved and re-erected on their assigned rails, at a cost that was never budgeted and with a risk of damage, misalignment of automation components, and disputes with the supplier over who is responsible for any defects.

Time is of the essence

Delays depreciate what has already been bought, let alone receive revenue. Equipment warranties and defects liability periods usually run from delivery or acceptance, so cranes that arrived in 2024 and 2025 may lose their cover before performing a single commercial move. Software licences, support contracts and IT hardware age in the same way. SLPA may be paying support fees on systems that are not running, may find the installed software nearing the end of its support life before it is used, and will need security updates before connecting an automated terminal to live operations. Cranes standing idle in salt-laden air also deteriorate without lubrication, periodic running and corrosion protection.

The Board must obtain a schedule of every warranty, licence and support expiry, and negotiate extensions while payments to suppliers are still outstanding and SLPA still has some leverage.

The money spent and owed

The two phases are estimated to cost $ 755 million. Of this, $ 550 million had been spent by early 2026. A substantial balance remains to be paid, including for civil works, straddle carriers not yet awarded, equipment, the terminal system and the operation building. The estimates exclude the cost of relocating the ARMGs and any claims not yet decided. It is not clear how the balance will be funded.

Idle capital is never free. At an illustrative 7% cost of capital, the spending already committed to Phase II represents an economic cost of more than $30 million a year before a single revenue-earning move is made.

Contractors and vendors waiting on SLPA

The civil contractor, a joint venture company, is waiting for a decision on EOT 4. Its prolongation claim on earlier extensions was rejected, so it appears to have received time without the associated cost. The contractor lodged a notice of dissatisfaction, often a precursor to FIDIC-based dispute proceedings. Other claims remain uncertified, and physical progress stood at around 80% at that stage. Delayed payments and unresolved claims can add to the slippage. Leaving EOT 4 undecided risks further claims and costs, while postponing the programme needed to complete the remaining works and earn revenue.

There is a real danger that EOT 4 will not be the last. Revetment and dredging works are exposed to turbulent weather. A strong El Niño is predicted too, so the known monsoon risks should already be built in. Marine works should be scheduled for calmer months, with acceleration where needed and close oversight by the Employer and Engineer, so that construction is completed within EOT 4.

The equipment supplier and terminal system vendor are awaiting payments under their contracts. The latter also depends on gate works, OCR portals, the ECI DB, staffing and integration testing. Completing one contract alone cannot make the terminal operational; these activities must be coordinated with the remaining civil works.

Regardless of intentions, contractors will ultimately respond to the credibility of the employer, and undecided claims and unfunded payments do not exactly instill faith in contractors.

The cost of delay

A committee of senior SLPA officers estimates the revenue foregone in 2026 at between $ 28.2 million and $ 105.6 million, or up to $ 8.8 million a month. In 2027, losses could reach $ 126.7 million if straddle carriers do not arrive. But this does not include actual economic costs of the delay. Only in the better scenario, with carriers from July 2027, does the year turn to a small gain of $ 8.2 million.

These numbers represent the revenue SLPA lost, but do not include the money SLPA is spending while waiting. This includes interest on loans and the costs associated with capital. It also includes preserving, insuring, and securing idle cranes, as well as relocating ARMGs. Furthermore, warranties may expire while licence fees continue. The Engineer’s extended supervision and the contractor’s prolongation costs exacerbate this. Additional money is being spent on repeated re-tendering and on legal and arbitration proceedings. SLPA is also paying staff for an operation that has not yet begun. Nor do they account for the $ 550 million already sunk. Economically, sunk costs should not drive future decisions, but every stagnant year earns that investment nothing and lowers the eventual return entirely.

The foregone revenue must also be viewed against Colombo’s existing terminal capacity. In 2024, SLPA-run terminals handled 2.41 million TEUs in total, compared with 3.35 million at CICT alone. The figures are not a direct measure of crane productivity, but they underline the importance of bringing ECT’s additional capacity into operation.

Competition is also developing elsewhere in Sri Lanka. Hambantota’s container volumes rose from 53,169 TEUs in 2024 to 428,036 in 2025, and its operator is investing to raise annual handling capacity to 2 million TEUs. Disruptions to shipping routes in the Middle East have made reliable alternatives increasingly important. This does not mean that ECT has already lost business to Hambantota, but prolonged delays may influence where shipping lines choose to call.

The opportunity cost of delay goes beyond revenue foregone in a particular year. Capital tied up in unfinished works cannot be used for improvements elsewhere in the port, while shipping lines plan their services around reliable terminals. Calls lost during the delay may not return even after ECT opens, and the longer-term loss of business is not captured in the committee’s estimates.

The 14 December 2026 date now given for operationalising the terminal should thus be read with care. With straddle carriers not expected before July 2027, it is at best a date for partial operation.

Marking one’s own homework: Conflict of interests

SLPA’s own engineers supervise the construction works and assess delays and contractual claims, including those arising from the Authority’s own instructions and decisions. This creates a clear conflict of interest, as SLPA is effectively assessing the consequences of its own actions. Such an arrangement is inconsistent with global industry best practice, which favours independent third-party engineering oversight and impartial assessment of contractual claims. An independent third-party Engineer should therefore be appointed to supervise the works and assess claims. Similar concerns arise in procurement, where parties with an interest in the straddle carrier award were able to reopen a completed technical evaluation.

There have also been shifts in leadership, with four or five Managing Directors and Project Directors being changed during Phase II, and SLPA has been led by at least four Chairmen since 2021. Each change brings a period of familiarisation, reopens settled questions and weakens accountability, because no single leader has owned the project from design to delivery. Meanwhile, the Board, the Ministry, the Cabinet, procurement committees, the Attorney General, the courts and organised labour each hold a some situational power, and the reality is an expensive, idle terminal.

What is to be done

The current management deserves credit for convening progress reviews and beginning to take stock, yet there is much to be done. We urge the Board to act hastily on the following:

1.Appoint an independent third-party Engineer to supervise construction and assess claims, supported by port, automation and commissioning specialists reporting to the Board, with a 60 to 90 day mandate to verify the critical path, the cost to complete and the pending claims.

2.Decide EOT 4 now and make it the last extension, on a realistic completion programme allowing for monsoon conditions.

3.Pay what is certified, decide what is claimed, and agree a funded plan for the remaining expenditure.

4.Procure the ECI DB now, while pursuing the dispute with the supplier in parallel.

5.Protect what has been bought through a census of spare parts, a schedule of warranty and licence expiries, and proper preservation of idle equipment.

6.Settle the straddle carrier award on an independent price assessment, and arrange interim operations meanwhile.

7.Approve the cadre, appoint a Chief Operating Officer, enforce the suppliers’ training and transfer of technology obligations, and keep one project director in post until completion.

8.Name a single party accountable for systems integration, and report the full cost of delay to the Board every month.

Lessons and an appeal

The ECT experience demonstrates the importance of completing proper site investigations and preparing an integrated design before construction begins. Where different components of a project must coexist, they should either be procured as an integrated system or have a single party responsible for coordinating their interfaces and ensuring compatibility. Civil works, equipment, operating systems and personnel should be planned and coordinated to be readily available. Adequate attention must be given to spare parts, staff training and maintenance requirements, rather than concentrating merely on construction. Cancellations of tenders demonstrates that the lowest procurement price does not equate to the lowest overall cost, particularly when delays postpone revenue generation. Continuity in project leadership and independent scrutiny of major decisions are equally important. Although Cabinet decisions contributed to postponement, the SLPA shares responsibility given the oversights in planning, procurement and decision-making.

Therefore the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, the line Ministry, and other stakeholders must treat the ECT as a national economic priority. Continued delay costs Sri Lanka foreign exchange it cannot afford to lose. The ECT must deliver the revenue it owes.

Dialog Axiata PLC has given up control of Digital Health Ltd., operator of the Doc990 digital health platform. It sold a 20% stake to Sunshine Holdings PLC’s healthcare arm and Nawaloka Hospitals PLC for Rs. 374.9 million, partially monetising its investment, the companies said on Friday.

Dialog’s wholly-owned subsidiary Digital Holdings Lanka sold 16.65% of Digital Health to Sunshine Healthcare Lanka Ltd., for Rs. 312.2 million. It sold a further 3.35% to Nawaloka Hospitals for Rs. 62.7 million after Nawaloka exercised its right of first refusal under the existing Shareholders’ Agreement, which entitles existing shareholders to buy shares before they are sold to an outsider.

Sunshine Healthcare also acquired the entire 5.26% stake of Ceylon Hospitals PLC (Durdans Hospital) for Rs. 98.7 million.

Durdans exercised its tag-along rights under the Shareholders’ Agreement dated 28 January 2021, which allow a minority shareholder to sell on the same terms when a stake changes hands.

The three sales were priced at Rs. 83.31 a share, valuing Digital Health at Rs. 1.87 billion.

The deals take Sunshine Healthcare’s total outlay to Rs. 410.8 million for a 21.92% holding. That makes it Digital Health’s second-largest shareholder after Digital Holdings, whose stake falls to 27.57% from 47.57%.

Including the 17.09% held by Dialog Axiata Digital Innovation Fund Ltd., the Dialog Group’s total holding falls to 44.66% from 64.66%. Digital Health will cease to be a subsidiary of the Group. Its retained interest will be accounted for as an associate in the Group’s consolidated financial statements, Dialog said.

Nawaloka Hospitals’ stake rises to 12.12% from 8.77%. Asiri Hospital Holdings PLC (13.33%) and Aartiz Technologies Ltd., (7.98%) retain their holdings.

Dialog said the transaction introduces Sunshine Healthcare as a strategic healthcare partner. It is expected to support Doc990’s growth by combining the platform’s digital healthcare capabilities with Sunshine Healthcare’s presence across pharmaceuticals, healthcare distribution, manufacturing, and retail.

Sunshine Holdings said the acquisition would expand its healthcare portfolio and strengthen the Group’s presence across the pharmaceutical, healthcare distribution, manufacturing, retail, and digital health sectors.

Alumex PLC has appointed Sriyanee Dhammika Kumari Semasinghe to its Board as an Independent Non-Executive Director.

Semasinghe, a former ambassador and career diplomat, has extensive bilateral and multilateral diplomatic experience gained over 29 years in the Sri Lanka Foreign Service. During her tenure, she promoted Sri Lanka’s diverse interests in the Republic of Poland, New York, Washington, DC and New Delhi.

Her multilateral work at the Sri Lankan diplomatic missions in Washington, DC and New York included liaising actively with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. In New York, she also represented Sri Lanka’s interests in selected Main Committees of the UN General Assembly.

At the Foreign Ministry, she gained nuanced regional and country-specific insights while serving in the Divisions of Europe and Central Asia, South Asia and SAARC, Economic Affairs, UN and Human Rights, and East Asia and the Pacific.

Her professional and academic experience, including training, has broadened her perspective on global developments and trends. It has also given her substantive exposure to policy development, strategic planning, negotiations, networking, lobbying, image promotion and crisis management.

She began her undergraduate studies at the University of Peradeniya before being awarded a full scholarship to Swarthmore College, USA. Semasinghe holds an MA in International Public Policy (MIPP) from the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), Johns Hopkins University, Washington, DC, USA, and a BA from Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania, USA.

Hambantota International Port (HIP) has delivered 167,569 vehicles across the March-December 2025 period and up to September 2026, with Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) supporting vehicle importers through increased demand and disruptions affecting vehicle movements.

Of this total, 86,389 vehicles were delivered between March and December 2025, comprising 30,809 brand new vehicles and 55,580 used vehicles. A further 81,180 vehicles were delivered in 2026 up to September, with the reported breakdown counting 25,018 brand new vehicles and 56,162 used vehicles.

The Vehicle Importers’ Association of Lanka (VIAL) has recognised HIPG’s continued responsiveness, operational flexibility and practical support in addressing the challenges faced by its members. The partnership has focused on keeping vehicles moving efficiently through the Port while providing relief during exceptional market conditions.

VIAL represents more than 450 members across Sri Lanka. Its membership includes established companies as well as micro, small and medium enterprises involved in vehicle imports and related support services. The Association works with Sri Lanka Customs, the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, the Department of Motor Traffic, the Police and other institutions on matters affecting the industry, while advocating on policy and representing members’ interests before the Government and relevant authorities.

With such a broad membership, VIAL has provided HIPG with an important channel for understanding the operational challenges faced across the vehicle-importing sector. HIPG Chief Executive Officer Wilson Qu said this dialogue had helped the Port respond more effectively as market conditions changed. ‘Meeting increased demand requires more than handling capacity. It requires a close understanding of our customers’ operational needs and the ability to respond when conditions change. Our work with VIAL reflects our commitment to efficient vehicle handling and to supporting the continuity of our customers’ supply chains. We value the Association’s recognition of that partnership.’

HIPG responded proactively to VIAL’s operational requirements, working with the Association to identify challenges and implement timely solutions to facilitate the smooth movement of vehicles. Its support included demurrage waivers and concessions during the period of vehicle import restrictions, when customers’ vehicles remained at the Port for extended periods. These measures were provided to facilitate cargo clearance and reduce the financial impact on customers.

More recently, disruptions to vehicle transhipment through the Gulf region prompted HIPG to introduce a storage cap mechanism for affected vehicles. The mechanism helped manage storage costs and gave customers greater cost predictability during the disruption period.

HIPG General Manager – Commercial and Marketing Bindu Ranasinghe said: ‘We have worked closely with VIAL to understand where importers need support and to develop practical responses. Whether through concessions for vehicles held during import restrictions or a storage cap during transhipment disruptions, our focus has been on helping customers manage costs and maintaining the efficient movement of their cargo. Beyond responding to immediate needs, we have worked to earn our customers’ trust and build relationships that can grow over the long term.’

VIAL President Sampath Merenchige said: ‘HIPG has been responsive to the challenges faced by vehicle importers, both during the increase in demand and when unexpected disruptions have affected vehicle movements. Its willingness to work with us, provide timely operational solutions and introduce measures to help manage costs has been valuable to our members. We appreciate the Port’s continued support and flexibility.’

Sri Lanka must earn free trade agreements (FTAs) through deep domestic reforms rather than expect them to follow from negotiation alone, Industry and Entrepreneurship Development Deputy Minister Chathuranga Abeysinghe said.

The Government is now moving to dismantle import levies left untouched for two decades and is seeking entry into Asia’s largest trade bloc.

‘We only talk about FTAs, but FTAs don’t come automatically. You have to earn them, and to earn them, you have to carry out a significant level of reforms in your country,’ Abeysinghe said at The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Sri Lanka Economic and Investment Summit last week.

With a small domestic market, Sri Lanka’s growth must come from integration into global value chains, he said, making market access a precondition for investment.

‘Why would foreign direct investment (FDI) come to Sri Lanka if we can’t trade with other nations? Our market is so small,’ Abeysinghe said. Some global companies operate locally, he added, but that was not enough.

Two barriers have kept Sri Lanka out of FTAs, he said. The first is the country’s two para-tariffs, the CESS and the Ports and Airports Development Levy (PAL), which are charged on imports on top of Customs duties. The Government plans to remove them by 2029. ‘For the last two decades, we did not touch it,’ he said. He described the change as a reform other countries undertook in the 1980s and 1990s.

Opening the market requires groundwork, Abeysinghe said. Local industries must be strong enough to compete, standards must be enforced to create a level playing field, and anti-narcotics practices must be in place. His Ministry is driving these initiatives alongside the Trade Ministry and the Finance Ministry. The Government is also moving to a simplified four-band tariff structure and improving the efficiency of ports, Customs, and revenue structures. ‘These are fundamentals that we missed over decades,’ he said.

Sri Lanka is now in a position to negotiate, Abeysinghe said. It has applied to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which he said would open up 30% of the global market, including Australia and New Zealand. It is also close to reaching agreement on the Thailand FTA. Negotiations will start soon to upgrade the goods-only Indo-Sri Lanka FTA into a comprehensive trade agreement, and talks on a possible agreement are underway with Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In Europe, the Government is working to retain the EU’s Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) trade concessions but will have to negotiate a separate trade agreement, he said. With the US, it has managed the existing trade arrangements.

Abeysinghe was blunt about where Sri Lanka can compete. ‘We can’t play in volume. That’s very clear. In the future, we can’t play on cost arbitrage. There’s no chance,’ he said. Instead, the country must position itself in the upper tier of supply chain partners, whether by supplying talent or manufacturing key components for integration into global markets.

That shift places demands on the private sector as well as the State. Product diversification requires the private sector and the Government to jointly invest in research and development to create intellectual property and new products, Abeysinghe said. Barriers to capital repatriation, which have kept venture capital and private equity out of the startup ecosystem, will be removed this year, he added.

He also urged local businesses to seek partnerships with global companies. ‘We should be bold enough to go and shake hands,’ he said. The Government wants hundreds of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to be partner-ready. Most local firms, however, remain private companies, which global investors find hard to assess and approach, and listed companies are few. To address this, the Government plans to encourage mid-sized SMEs to list, and his Ministry will run a program to identify gaps that prevent local firms from forming global partnerships.

Abeysinghe said Sri Lanka is within two and a half hours of a population of 3.3 billion but has traditionally failed to capitalise on that location. Its trade strategy will rest on ports and maritime activities: bunkering, re-exports, and intraport trade. The Colombo, Hambantota, and Trincomalee ports will serve as strategic assets.

He said Sri Lanka would be ready to partner with the rest of the world within the next two to three years.

Sarvodaya Development Finance PLC (SDF), has further strengthened its regional presence with the opening of a new branch in Kantale and the relocation of its existing Dehiattakandiya branch to a new premises.

These developments mark another step in the company’s ongoing efforts to enhance customer convenience, improve accessibility to financial services, and strengthen its commitment to serving communities across the country.

The new Kantale branch was officially opened on 15 October 2026 at No. 88/1/A, Main Street, Kantale. The opening ceremony was attended by the Chairman / Directors, Chief Executive Officer, and members of the management team of Sarvodaya Development Finance. The establishment of this new branch is aimed at providing residents of Kantale and surrounding areas with greater convenience and improved access to financial services, while strengthening the company’s presence in the region.

As part of its continued focus on enhancing customer convenience and service accessibility, Sarvodaya Development Finance relocated its Dehiattakandiya branch to a new premises on 14 October 2026, commencing operations at 10:00 a.m. Previously located at No. 62/1E, New Town, Dehiattakandiya, the branch now operates from No. 29/G, New Town, Dehiattakandiya. The relocation is intended to provide existing and prospective customers in the area with more convenient access to the company’s financial services.

Through these developments, Sarvodaya Development Finance aims to strengthen its engagement with local communities, including farmers, small and medium-sized entrepreneurs, local businesses, and individual customers in Kantale, Dehiattakandiya, and surrounding areas. By improving access to formal financial services, the company seeks to support the financial needs of these communities and contribute to their economic activities.

Understanding and responding to evolving customer needs remains a key priority for Sarvodaya Development Finance. The company continues to focus on delivering accessible, reliable, and customer-centric financial services through improvements to its branch network and service delivery capabilities. Such initiatives reflect its broader commitment to building stronger relationships with customers while ensuring that financial services remain accessible to communities beyond major urban centres.

Sarvodaya Development Finance said the opening of the Kantale branch and the relocation of the Dehiattakandiya branch further demonstrate its continued commitment to customer-focused service delivery, promoting financial inclusion, and supporting the economic needs of regional communities across Sri Lanka.