STORY: Sri Lankan engineer shares experience working at Colombo Port City
SHOOTING TIME: Jan. 7/10, 2025
DATELINE: Jan. 15, 2025
LENGTH: 00:01:55
LOCATION: Colombo
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Colombo Port City
2. SOUNDBITE (English): SANJEEWA ALWIS, Senior Engineer MEP (Mechanical and Electrical), Colombo Port City

STORYLINE:

The Colombo Port City in Sri Lanka is a major project under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

SOUNDBITE (English): SANJEEWA ALWIS, Senior Engineer MEP (Mechanical and Electrical), Colombo Port City
"2017, so I joined the port city. When I joined halfway, the reclamation work was done, so that time we started the infrastructure design work. So infrastructure design, as divided into two areas, phase one and phase two. So phase one design, we already started that time. So it took me a few years to finish it actually. So once it is finished, we started construction of the phase one infrastructure work. So now infrastructure work (is) almost going to be finished. This year, it will be finished. Then it will start functioning.
When we do the design, there's a difference from the mainland. Actually, the port city is very well organized. And each and every plot, we have the services connected to it.
And basically, actually, this is because Sri Lanka doesn't have the technology to build this type of city. So actually the Chinese they help, they transfer their technology for us to build the port city, using the latest technology.
Because luckily I found this job, so whatever the experience I gain in Dubai, I use in Sri Lanka to develop my homeland. So that's the main thing. And even my daughters they like here, because I can stay with them and work.
There are a lot of Sri Lankans working. This (is) creating a lot of jobs, and plus, the people are getting experience using this type of project. Once the port city is finished, that will create more than 80,000 jobs in Sri Lanka. So that is also more beneficial for the Sri Lankan people, as well as this is to boost Sri Lanka's economy."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Colombo.
(XHTV)