New development vistas in North and East

The country's development and progress will receive a major boost with the development activities launched in the North after a lapse of 30 years said Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka when he met a group of visiting US investors at the Prime Ministers office recently.

The Prime Minister said eventhough Nature has gifted the Northern and Eastern Provinces with fertile soil those regions were unable to make a contribution towards agricultural development due to the scourge of terrorism.

Now those regions have been totally liberated from terrorism, they are expected to provide a substantial agricultural harvest to the market in the near future.

The premier said the North and East were surrounded by a massive sea area with a vast fisheries potential the Government hoped to set up atleast two canned fish factories to cater to the excess fish harvest gathered from these areas.

Sri Lanka is a tourist paradise and the country would experience a boost in the tourist industry too in the near future, he said. Sri Lanka is rich in natural resources.

It had favourable climatic conditions throughout the year. Now the terrorism which was an obstacle for peace had been totally wiped out an environment conducive for foreign investment had dawned in all parts of the country.

The Government too had offered all sponsorship and assistance to foreign investors at the highest diplomatic level leader of the visiting US team Jake Vigoda said, they hoped to invest in the tourist industry in Sri Lanka and to identify suitable tourist hotels and develop team into five star level.