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First tender round opened last week, three projects totalling $ 55 m confirmed in the Eastern and the Northern Provinces
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Bid to woo domestic and international investors targeting $50-60 million in investments
Land with sea front in Bentota
The Tourism Ministry and the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority SLTDA has set off on a major investment drive and announced last week the offering of over 3,000 acres of State-owned land for tourism to domestic and international investors targeting $ 50-60 million in investments.
Prof. Ruwan Ranasinghe, Deputy Minister Tourism said lands are available in an automated system under the SLTDA named ‘Land Bank Management Information System’ (LBMIS) for both land owners to upload the new lands and for interested investors to select a land for investment.
The new system will serve those seeking to develop tourism projects, while also allowing landowners to list their properties for potential partnerships, lease or sale and in the same breath he informed that the government will not hesitate to reclaim and relocate the land if investors fail to implement their projects within the stipulated timelines.
“We are creating a transparent and efficient mechanism for investors, but we are also serious about project implementation. Land that remains undeveloped will be returned to the bank and offered to other serious investors” he asserted. “This initiative is part of an ongoing practice to accelerate sustainable tourism development across the country.”
Kalpitiya
“The land bank provides a significantly improved facilitation process for investors. The LBMIS, accessible at landbank.sltda.gov.lk, features a repository of pre-evaluated land parcels suitable for a range of tourism projects, from luxury resorts and boutique hotels to eco-lodges and wellness retreats”, he revealed.
The SLTDA’s Investor Relations Unit (IRU) will facilitate the process, assisting with approvals, permits, and clearances through a single-window mechanism. We aim to replace that reactive model and establish a proactive, inventory-led, technology-driven process,” he added. This move is part of a broader strategy to attract high-value tourism and position Sri Lanka as a premier destination in Asia.
The SLTDA is inviting both local and international investors with proven capabilities to submit Expressions of Interest for these properties and also encourages private landowners to list their properties in the land bank and join this process actively and seize this opportunity for brighter prospects and aide the state’s efforts in the economic development of the country.
Chairman SLTDA revealed they are in collaboration with Divisional Secretariats identifying and vetting plots for potential release and with other land-owning State agencies such as Sri Lanka Ports Authority, Urban Development Authority, Mahaweli Authority, Land Reform Commission, Sri Lanka Railways, Forest Department, Janatha Estate Development Board to obtain formal partnerships, details of cleared lands for tourism development.
Upon being questioned as to the processes having had obstacles before for potential investors, the Deputy Minister Tourism Prof Ranasinghe assured the full support to investors in which the clearance process will be simplified. “A streamlined system to cut red tape and accelerate project delivery is in place” he added.
The system can be accessed through https://landbank.sltda.gov.lk.
