Sri Lankan Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Mahinda Rajapaksa presents the government's budget proposals for 2021 in the Parliament in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on Nov. 17, 2020. Rajapaksa on Tuesday presented the government's maiden budget proposals for 2021, which aims to strengthen development and expand domestic economic opportunities. (Xinhua)
COLOMBO, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Mahinda Rajapaksa on Tuesday presented the government's maiden budget proposals for 2021, which aims to strengthen development and expand domestic economic opportunities.
Reading his budget proposal in the Parliament, the Prime Minister said the government aimed to create a strong nation by exploiting the development opportunities that arose as a central hub, in the new economic order of the world, to both the conventional western advanced economies and the powerful emerging eastern economies.
"We must develop the Hambantota and Colombo Ports together with the airports to be a centre in the international commercial processes, expanding the domestic economic opportunities, within a broad national vision," Rajapaksa said.
He said the primary objective of the government's social development program was to expand the health services to effectively safeguard people from pandemics such as the COVID-19 as well as from the non-communicable diseases which currently have a high incidence.
Rajapaksa further said that through the budget, the government would aim to increase its exports of products such as tea, apparel, rubber products,
cinnamon, pepper, gems and electrical appliances to markets such as India, China and Japan.
He further said steps were expeditiously underway to develop the Colombo Port City Special Economic Zone as an attractive business hub. The preliminary work related to the construction of the first financial and commercial centre has already been initiated.
Tourism, foreign and commercial activities of the first phase of the Colombo Port City is scheduled to commence in 2021, Rajapaksa said. Enditem
