Sri Lanka resumes key highway project with $638 million Chinese funding
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COLOMBO – Sri Lanka restarted construction of a highway project with a US$500 million (S$638 million) Chinese loan on Sept 17, the first funding from its largest bilateral creditor since it defaulted on its foreign debt three years ago.
The building of the 38km stretch of the Central Expressway that links Colombo with Kandy in the central highlands was launched in 2016. But it was suspended in 2023 when the project ran out of funds and building materials in the aftermath of the country's worst financial crisis.
The highway aims to provide faster connectivity between the two major cities and support economic activity. About one-third of it was completed before work came to a halt.
The government now aims to complete the project by April 2028, highways minister Bimal Rathnayake said on Sept 17.
The US$500 million loan from China Exim Bank was extended on concessionary terms, Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said during a ceremony to restart the project.
“Typically, when a country goes through a financial crisis, experts say that the country loses a decade of development. But I’m confident that we can reduce this time by half,” he added.
“Sri Lanka will post growth close to 5 per cent this year and our upcoming budget for 2026 is targeted at ending the crisis,” he said.
Helped by a US$2.9 billion bailout by the International Monetary Fund, Sri Lanka grew by 5 per cent in 2024, posting a recovery from the financial crisis triggered by a record fall in foreign exchange.
It completed a US$10 billion rework of its bilateral debt in June, which included restructuring deals with Japan, India and China.
Sri Lanka owes China US$4.9 billion in outstanding debt, mostly for infrastructure projects such as highways, according to latest data from the island's finance ministry.
Beijing and New Delhi jostle for influence in Sri Lanka, which is located strategically in the Indian Ocean, just off the southern tip of India.
Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr Qi Zhenhong, hailed the construction of the highway stretch by China Metallurgical Group as a symbol of partnership between the two countries. REUTERS
