Sri Lanka to crackdown on state land, marsh encroachment-ECONOMYNEXT
Sri Lanka will not allow anymore encroachment on state land or illegal filling of marshland that has worsened floods and delayed urban modernisation, Minister of Megapolis and Western Development Patali Champika Ranawaka said.
Illegal seizure of state land in marshlands and along the coast was taking place regularly, and was done with the backing of politicians, he told a public forum on the government’s Western Region Megapolis Planning Project (WRMPP)
The project, covering suburbs to the north and south of the capital Colombo, intends to make most of the western province, which generates almost half the island’s economic output, into a more liveable region.
Ranawaka said a megapolis authority with wide powers will be set up to implement the project in which urban settlement and transport will be integrated and better planned.
“When we set up the megapolis authority no one – whether rich or poor – will be allowed to seize land or marshland anymore,” he said. “We will implement the law forcefully.
”Everyone has a right to live in the city but no one has right to seize state land,” Ranawaka said.
Filling up of marshland and construction of makeshift homes by poor migrants over oil pipelines and railway track reservation land had worsened flooding in the city and delayed efforts to modernise the oil pipeline and rail networks.
“No one will be allowed to block common amenities by squatting on pipelines and rail track reservation,” Ranawaka said.
(Colombo/December 01 2015)
Ceylon Chamber issues desk calendar with a focus on biodiversity
Ceylon Chamber issues desk calendar with a focus on biodiversity
The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, the country’s premier business chamber, has issued a calendar for the year 2016, with a focus on Sri Lanka’s valuable biodiversity
The calendar consists of attractive pictures of Sri Lankan fauna such as the sambar and the Sri Lankan leopard, the latter being classified as an endangered species according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species.
It also includes pictures of the little green bee-eater and the Indian star tortoise. An image of an old world species of monkey endemic to Sri Lanka and a picture of a butterfly, which can be found in abundance in the wet and intermediate zones of the island, also light up the calendar.
Developed in collaboration with Biodiversity Sri Lanka (previously the Sri Lanka Business and Biodiversity Platform), the calendar includes Public and Bank Holidays, Holidays coming under the Shop and Office Act, Charter Party Holidays and Chamber Holidays.
It also includes important contact details of the Business Service Units of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, for the convenience of the business community.
Biodiversity Sri Lanka is a collaborative initiative of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, IUCN and Dilmah Conservation, and is a tool to foster dialogue between the private sector and conservation agencies.
WNPS lecture: ‘Colombo wetlands under threat’
WNPS lecture: ‘Colombo wetlands under threat’
Prof. Weerakoon is currently attached to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The wetlands of Colombo are extremely important for the flood management of the commercial capital. They also support a rich variety of species, including many endemic and threatened species, despite it being a highly urbanised area. For this reason, several wetlands have been designated as protected areas. The Colombo wetlands also provide a suite of other ecosystem services such as recreation, provision of food, microclimate regulation, and educational opportunities, among others. They, however, are perhaps the most threatened wetlands in the country!
The Beddagana Biodiversity Park and the Thalawathugoda Wetland Park were established with the aim of promoting awareness and recreational opportunities for both local and foreigners alike. Many of the users of these recreational facilities, however, are oblivious of the richbiodiversity that exist in the Colombo wetlands. The aim of this presentation is to provide an overview of the biodiversity and ecosystem services provided by Colombo wetlands, the major threats to these wetlands and what can be done to improve the present status of them.
Latest Edition of the CBD Secretariat’s Business.2020 Magazine—Focus on ABS
It has been a year since the coming into force of the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization at the twelfth Conference of Parties (COP 12) to the Convention on Biological Diversity held in Pyeongchang, Republic of Korea. We therefore felt that it was appropriate to shine a spotlight on this issue for the business community and discuss the various opportunities and challenges that face us in implementing this important Protocol. The articles in this edition of business 2020 will help companies and other readers to better understand the provisions, opportunities and obligations inherent in the Nagoya Protocol. You will find the articles interesting and informative.
Understanding inclusive and holistic DEVELOPMENT
Understanding inclusive and holistic DEVELOPMENT
The undeniable role of local authorities and the civil society organisations in policy formation and development
Sadly the Centre hangs on to power and the money is also kept within the Central Government and its affiliated bodies. The LAS which provided a yeoman service to the public has really lost its pride of place. Unblocking the resources which can flow to the LAS can lead to unlocking the huge capacity and potential the LAS have to serve the public.
I had the great opportunity to represent Sri Lanka at the recently held Policy Forum on Development, Meeting of the Asia and Pacific Region, in Bangkok, Thailand. This initiative was launched in March 2010 involving 700 CSOS and LAS to reflect and define ways to improve the effectiveness of all actors involved in the EU Development Cooperation. The PFD held its inaugural meeting in November 2013 after the joint declaration which acknowledged that CSOS and LAS as essential components of any working democracy and the need for a permanent space for policy dialogue.
The opportunity I received was all thanks to Ms. Salima Chitalia of the European Union, Ms. Dr. Bernadia Tjandradewi, Secretary General of the UCLG-ASPAC and Ms. Hemanthi Goonesekera of the Federation of Sri Lanka’s Local Government Association.
The experience for me was invaluable and I feel that Sri Lanka still has a chance to steer on to the path of sustainable development IF we take the corrective measures right now.
MDGS
At the turn of the new millennium the world had ambitious plans to reach the eight Millennium Development Goals. Many initiatives were launched to keep these promises. However, by 2011, all actors realised that achieving these MDGS fully by 2015 was not possible due to various factors. One reason was the rapid changes in socio-economic and political contexts in all parts of the world. The other being that the LAS and CSOS played an insignificant role in the development processes including policy formation. All international aid agencies had been discussing with central governments and hoped that the dialogue would flow to the next levels and action would be taken. Unfortunately the flow of information, plans and activities did not take place at the ground level as envisaged. In many countries in Asia, including Sri Lanka, all these factors made the MDGS unachievable.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS (SDGS)
The UN has come up with 17 SDGS to ensure that in the next 15 years we not only achieve the development goals but also ensure that such achievements are sustained for the benefit of the future generations.
The 17 MDGS are 1) End poverty in all its forms everywhere; 2) End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture; 3) Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages; 4) Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all; 5) Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls; 6) Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all; 7) Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all; 8) Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all; 9) Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation; 10) Reduce inequality within and among countries; 11) Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable; 12) Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns;13) Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts; 14) Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development; 15) Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss; 16) Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and
inclusive institutions at all levels; 17) Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development.
TAKING THE SDGS FORWARD
Sri Lanka has still not understood the importance of inclusive and holistic development. During the deliberations at the PDF, it was revealed that this is the bane of all Asian countries. The mistakes which many of these governments made by not co-opting the Local Authorities, must be overcome in order to seriously work towards achieving the SDGS.
There is also responsibility on the part of the Governments as well as the international development aid agencies to have a plan to include both CSOS and LAS in this journey. To this I am very pleased that the EU has taken firm steps to encompass all countries.
I feel that Sri Lanka has to improve its mode of operation in order to reap the maximum of international development support.
At present there are only two departments that coordinate between the Central Government and the aid agencies; one at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the other the External Resources Department of the Ministry of Finance. I see a HUGE draw back as far as these two departments are concerned; we need to understand that several other key ministry departments need to be co-opted for the optimal utilization of billions of Euros and Dollars coming into the country.
This is a necessity in today’s context where unlike in the 70s and 80s there are many aid agencies. Very recently the government of China also launched its own international development bank. The support is out there. So unless Sri Lanka changes its mode of operation, achieving the SDGS will not be a reality.
CSOS PERSPECTIVE
Speaking at the inaugural PDF in Bangkok, a CSO representative from India presented the state of affairs in development in her country. She said that there was absolutely no transparency when it came to development projects and how the aid was being utilised.
There is abuse of power in the disbursement of funds and Local Authority representatives are involved in the awarding of contracts.
She added that not only the LAS kept the rate payers in the dark; they did not even consider involving them to plan development activities, although some discussions took place. The situation is identical in Sri Lanka as well. The Central Government hardly allocates resources to the LAS. The provincial system too takes a similar approach. The LAS are starved of resources. Sadly the elected representatives are more interested in individual and collective ‘power’ and not providing a service to the rate payers.
UNBLOCKING AND UNLOCKING THE LAS
In Sri Lanka the LAS have been ignored since the 13th Amendment. Prior to that the Centre and the LAS were the two and most effective bodies that served the public.
However, since 1987 this has been lost due to the Provincial Council system being introduced.
Sadly the Centre hangs on to power and the money is also kept within the Central Government and its affiliated bodies. The LAS which provided a yeoman service to the public has really lost its pride of place. Unblocking the resources which can flow to the LAS can lead to unlocking the huge capacity and potential the LAS have to serve the public.
FROM LAS TO PARLIAMENT
One of the reasons why the LAS are being ignored to such an extent is that in the past those who were elected into LAS eventually went to Parliament as members. They had many years of serving the public before they became members of Parliament.
For example former Prime Ministers D. M Jayaratne and Ratnasiri Wickramanayake were members of the LAS long before they became MPS. When a person has served at the Local Authority level, they understand the needs and the service an LA can effectively render. Unfortunately in the present day general elections, about 60 percent of the representatives are parachuted from various corners of the country with zero experience on governance and public service.
Only Four Percent Of The Ocean Is Protected, New Study Reveals
Only Four Percent Of The Ocean Is Protected, New Study Reveals
Only four percent of the ocean is protected, and marine protected areas (MPA) make up all of that four percent, according to researchers from the University of British Columbia, Institute for Ocean and Fisheries.
The researchers urge that major areas in the oceans require major conservation and protection in order to meet basic global targets, according a news release.
Representatives from over 200 countries met in Nagoya, Japan in 2010, where they adopted the United Nations’ Aichi Targets in order to preserve biodiversity. The United Nations‘ goal is to protect at least 10 percent of ocean biodiversity by 2020.
Boonaier claimed that countries need to create more MPA’s and they need to improve protection of biodiversity and ensuring that policies are enforced. In “No-take” marine protected areas, it is it is prohibited to extract any resources, which includes living resources like fish, crustaceans and seaweed as well as non-living resources, such as oil and gas. In 2006, 0.65 percent of the oceans were protected.
Early this October, the Chilean government announced that one of the largest marine reserves in the Americas was created hundreds of miles off the Chile’s coast. The new marine protected area is approximately the size of Italy. The area is known as theNazca-Desventuradas Marine Park, and it consists of 8 percent of ocean areas worldwide that have been declared off-limits to fishing.
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BSL Initiates the Development of an IWRM Plan for the Plantations Sector
Based on a decision made by the Plantations Sector Standing Committee of BSL to prioritize the conservation and efficient management of water resources in plantations, and with the voluntary leadership of Talawakelle Tea Estates PLC (TTEL) to carry out the relevant baseline studies in the organizations’ Kiruwanaganga, Mattakelle and Great Western estates, a field visit was organized recently to scope out the current issues and challenges in this area.
Post discussions held in this regard, to garner the technical support of the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) headquartered in Sri Lanka, this scoping visit was carried out on the 15th and 16th of October 2015 with the participation of Dr. Herath Manthrithilake – Head of the Sri Lanka Development Initiative – and Dr. Lal Muthuwatte – Regional Researcher – Hydrological Modelling and Remote Sensing from IWMI, and Mr. Theja Dharmaratne – General Manager HR and Quality Management Development, representing TTEL and the Plantations Sector Standing Committee of BSL.
The findings of the scoping visit will be produced in the form of a report for evaluation of the Plantations Sector Standing Committee, which will then propose necessary steps to be taken in the direction of developing an Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) plan for the Plantations Sector which can be adopted and used for application by the Plantations Sector in Sri Lanka currently faced with numerous challenges with respect to water resources and its efficient management.
‘Are we on the right track for transformative CSR’: Banking sector forum tomorrow- Daily FT / Sunday Times
‘Are we on the right track for transformative CSR’: Banking sector forum tomorrow
With an objective of initiating a dialogue on stakeholder transformation through ‘Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility’, CSR Sri Lanka will host its first ‘Banking Sector Forum’ on 20 October.
CSR Sri Lanka, the first national apex body and catalyst of the concept of ‘transformative CSR’, now takes the ownership in driving and aligning the private sector towards more nationally important, impactful and relevant CSR engagement as part of their business practices.
Following the successful launch of CSR Sri Lanka in October 2014, in April 2015, three sessions were conducted for heads of private sector companies, senior Government officials and CSR practitioners to drive the concept of ‘Transformative CSR’ and to emphasise the importance of public and private sector collaboration.
Stemming from those initiatives, a strong dialogue has been built up between the private sector, Government sector and CSR Sri Lanka on different CSR initiatives.
The next step of this collaboration is to bring the country’s CSR efforts onto a common sustainable platform. As part of this exercise, CSR Sri Lanka is now taking the initiative to focus on different business sectors that contribute to the country’s economic growth. Each industry sector in Sri Lanka currently spends a considerable amount on various project-based CSR activities.
The first sector focused forum will be organised exclusively for the banking sector as the contribution of the banking sector to CSR activities of the country is quite significant. CSR Sri Lanka has embarked upon an important direction in the Banking Sector Forum to discuss the path that banks should take towards ‘Corporate Sustainability and Responsibility’.
Since the banking sector has a higher capacity in the light of the wider stakeholder group that they are engaged with, it is timely that the opportunities the banking sector has to be engaged in stakeholder transformation are discussed.
This will be an ideal forum to review the insights of CSR practices and experiences within the sector. The forum will capture the perspectives of international practices, government relations and private sector practices in CSR done by the banking sector through actual industry case studies.
Eminent personality Deepal Sooriyaarachchi will then discuss the cases presented and how these could be transformed to incorporate stakeholder transformation and will provide insights for the sustainable way forward.
The event will be held on 20 October at Hilton Colombo Residences from 7.30 a.m. to 9.30 a.m. as a breakfast forum, with exclusive participation over 45 of CSR practitioners from the private and state banking sector by invitation.
The forum is organised in collaboration with MillenniumIT as the strategic event partner and Sampath Bank as event sponsor.
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Lankan banks defaulting on green financing?
Lankan banks defaulting on green financing?
France Ambassador Jean-Marin Schuh
World Bank Green Finance Specialist Zhuo Cheng
By Charumini de Silva
The importance of the banking sector swiftly and sincerely embracing “green financing” for sustainable development came under the spotlight yesterday as the world is seeing a rapid shift in responding to environmental concerns.
In a world of still prominent banking intermediation, banks should adapt their business model to climate change by reorienting their funding towards low-carbon projects, Ambassador of France in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Jean-Marin Schuh said.He added that the challenges currently faced by climate change were going to be significant in time to come and thus financial institutions had to play a key role in the transition towards a carbon neutral economy.
“It is time that banks to take measures aiming at addressing climate change. Banks should consider their business models to encourage low carbon projects and help the transition towards a carbon neutral economy,” Schuh said.
The Ambassador made these remarks at a breakfast conference on ‘Green Finance’ which was jointly organised by the Embassy of France and French Agency of Development (AFD) yesterday to mark International Day for Natural Disaster Reduction.
He further asserted that during the first 10 days of December, France will host and preside over the 21st session of the Conference of the Parties (COP21) in Paris. This conference is the largest diplomatic event ever hosted by France with over 40,000 delegates and visitors from 195 countries attending.
Noting that the stakes were high and goals were twofold, he said the international community had to reach a legally binding agreement that would enable mankind to limit global warming to 2˚C over the next century compared to pre-industrial level; and mobilise starting from 2020, $100 billion per year by developed countries from public and private sources.
“At present many public and private finance actors from developing and developed countries have acquired experience in green financing to fund a sustainable development. This is notably the case in France and Sri Lanka which boast an experience worth sharing and discussing in the lead up to COP21,” he added.
World Bank urges SL to move towards carbon neutral economy
The World Bank yesterday urged Sri Lanka to strive towards achieving a carbon neutral economy via concerted multi-stakeholder efforts.Emphasising on World Bank’s partnership with Sri Lanka in marching towards a carbon neutral economy, World Bank Carbon Finance Specialist Zhuo Cheng said that the partnership had been more targeted to assist Sri Lanka to achieve 20% Non-Conventional Renewable Energy (NCRE) sources by following sustainable and cost effective business models.
She said that Sri Lanka needed to mobilise more than $2 billion in the coming 20 years to achieve the 20% NCRE target. “Hence, to satisfy this huge investment demand, our partnership is quite actually focused on encouraging and helps Sri Lanka to build PPPs for investment through the technical assistance and compatibility in supported by the World Bank.”
Commenting on the green energy projects the World Bank is currently supporting in Sri Lanka, Cheng explained that they had plans to set up a wind power plant in Mannar as a pilot project and by June next year they hoped to submit the Green Climate Funding (GCF) proposal for Mannar wind power investment.
Sri Lanka has received support from the World Bank via the Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF) to support capacity development to access GCF and for strengthening the Sri Lanka Climate Fund.
At present, Sri Lanka is preparing a Concept Note to apply for GCF readiness support.
“We have an important component in our partnership to provide compatibility to Sri Lanka Climate Fund (SLCF). This fund has been established in 2008 with the main objective to serve as a national level technical financial intermediary to catalyse PPPs for climate smart investments and also for the country to have direct access to international climate finance resources,” she explained.
Further she noted that besides the investment dimension, the fund would financially accompany willing countries in the design of their national policies and sectoral strategies intended to cope with the climate issue.
Highlighting the next steps of the World Bank, Cheng said that by December 2015 initial results of two to three sector studies which contribute to strategic sector planning for NCRE development and the draft design document package for carbon crediting program would be completed.
She also revealed that by September next year the Emission Reduction Purchase agreement between Sri Lanka and the World Bank would be signed.
– See more at: http://www.ft.lk/article/483587/Lankan-banks-defaulting-on-green-financing?#sthash.p4BxTsgB.dpuf
