By: Isuru Parakrama
Colombo (LNW): A number of development agencies, including the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the World Bank (WB), and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have agreed to extend support for restructuring process of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), following a meeting held with the development agencies for the purpose.
These agencies were requested to provide the following assistance to Sri Lanka;
- Enrolling foreign and domestic experts in energy, finance and legal fields to expedite the implementation of the restructuring plan;
- Obtaining necessary support for separation of generation, transmission and distribution;
- Conducting audits related to finance and energy fields;
- Human Resource Management during the restructuring process;
- Establishing and adapting public-private business models;
- Legislation and drafting;
- Research required for the restructuring process;
- Implementation of generation plans based on renewable energy; required communication regarding the operation
- Technical and financial support required to maintain a plan office till the completion of the restructuring programme.
Accordingly, the said agencies have agreed to provide assistance to Sri Lanka by dividing themselves as groups.
Sri Lankan focal points representing the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the World Bank (WB), the Japan International Corporation Agency (JICA), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Department of External Resources (ERD), and the Department of National Planning (NPD) and their members, and the members of the Committee appointed for the restructuring of the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) attended the event.
