On the Occasion of a Seminar on “Quality Infrastructure” in Commemoration of “the International Cooperation Day”
2020/10/8
Ambassador's Speech
Deshamanya Professor W D Lakshman, Governor, Central Bank of Sri Lanka,
Prof. H.D. Karunaratne, Chairman, Institute of Policy Studies, and Senior Professor of University of Colombo,
Dr. D.D.P.M Dunusinghe, Senior Lecturer of University of Colombo,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Good afternoon, Ayubowan, Wanakkam, こんにちは。
I am extremely honoured to stand here today to commemorate Japan’s “International Cooperation Day” with the privilege of having kind presence of our long-standing Sri Lankan friends. It is all the more significant to remember this auspicious day in the city of Colombo -for it was in the capital of Ceylon where the initiative for a new framework of regional cooperation, capped with the name of the city, was first conceived in 1950- upon which Japan has shaped its new role in the aftermath of World War II.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Sixty-six years ago on this day, 6th October 1954, a historic decision to join “the Colombo Plan” was made by the Cabinet of the Government of Japan. This decision has set the new course for redefining Japan’s identity as a major development partner in the international community, and to mark the aspirations of this epoch, “6th October” was inscribed as “the International Cooperation Day” on the first page of the history of Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA). It is one of our aims today to revisit the genesis of the Colombo Plan, to which “the International Cooperation Day” is inseparably connected, while recalling its founding principles authored by the leading architects of the Colombo Plan, amongst whom Sri Lankan luminaries stood at the helm when the world was in search of the new order of stability and peace. The fact that this year marks the 70th anniversary of the Commonwealth Foreign Ministers’ Conference convened in Colombo in 1950, through which the first breath of life was infused into the Colombo Plan, would most certainly add further significance to this attempt.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
At the outset of the Colombo Plan, greater emphasis was placed on the Technical Cooperation Scheme with a view to developing human resources as the agency of consolidating the foundation of the nation building. Led by this currency of the times, the Japanese assistance to Sri Lanka, which started in 1955, also commenced with technical cooperation backed by the rich experience and knowledge accumulated rapidly during the industrial revolution in the Meiji Era, which also contributed to the postwar economic recovery and development in Japan.
Technical cooperation not only facilitates transfer of technology, but also fosters bond of friendship most naturally through the training programs with human touch. To date, over 13,350 Sri Lankan prospective leaders have received training opportunities under Japanese ODA programs. One of the iconic figures to recall in this context is Deshamanya Dr. Polwattearachchige Romiel Anthonis, a world-renowned surgeon who had been trained in Japan as one of the first recipients of the Colombo Plan Scholarship, and who had pursued professional guidance from Prof. NAKAYAMA Komei at Chiba University, known to be, as Dr. Anthonis described, “the greatest surgeons of the time”. The legacy of Deshamanya Dr. Anthonis is a culmination of enduring strength that technical cooperation is endowed with, which features human-centered development, that elicits inspiration in our hearts unfadingly.
Over the nearly seven decades, the Japanese economic cooperation towards Sri Lanka has evolved in close consonance with the genuine development needs of the Sri Lankan people. Currently, the Government of Japan’s assistance to Sri Lanka, based on the principle of “promoting high-quality and inclusive growth,” gives priority to i) promoting quality growth, ii) development cooperation for inclusive growth, and iii) mitigating vulnerability. In order to achieve the first goal, that is, promoting high-quality growth of Sri Lanka, Japan has extended assistance for developing infrastructure in wide-ranging areas, including transportation, energy, water supply, waste water management, and irrigation.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today’s seminar will unfold under the rubric of “Quality Infrastructure.” So, let me give you some background on this concept.
In recent years, Japan launched an initiative of “Quality Infrastructure” development, which, in our view, leads to resilient, inclusive and sustainable growth of developing countries. “Quality Infrastructure” should be developed in accordance with international standards, with particular emphasis on (i) open access, (ii) transparency, (iii) economic efficiency including life-cycle cost, and (iv) financial viability of recipient countries. This concept is gaining currency in the international community. In 2016, when Japan hosted the G7 Ise-Shima Summit, the G7 leaders agreed upon the “G7 Ise-Shima Principles of Promoting Quality Infrastructure Investment.” In addition, at the G20 Osaka Summit in 2019, under Japan’s leadership, G20 countries including emerging donors endorsed “G20 Principles of Quality Infrastructure Investment”, which includes the four priority elements I just mentioned. Japan, under this concept, will continue to engage in the development of infrastructure in Sri Lanka most diligently, with special focus on ports, airports, power supply, water supply, sewage system, and irrigation, among others, to correspond to the vision of the Government of Sri Lanka. I would like to add that “Quality Infrastructure” will contribute to enhancing “physical connectivity” in the Indo-Pacific region, leading to the peace, stability and prosperity across the region.
Three prominent speakers who grace today’s seminar - Deshamanya Prof. W.D. Lakshman, Governor, Central Bank of Sri Lanka, Prof. H.D. Karunaratne, Chairman, Institute of Policy Studies and Senior Professor of the University of Colombo, and Dr. D.D.P.M Dunusinghe, Senior Lecturer of University of Colombo- will shed more light on today’s subject from various angles of their expertise and bring forth a complete picture of our time-honoured economic partnership. It is indeed my great honour to have the gems of leading economists here with us, who are profoundly versed in the subject of Japanese economic development and the history of Japanese ODA, with a host of illustrious publications produced through their close intimacy with academic life in Japan. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere appreciation for kindly joining in this seminal event and, by projecting their insightful visions, for elevating the seminar to the higher plane.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The spirit of Colombo Plan rests on “Planning Prosperity Together” which is characterized by building and sustaining “win-win-win” relationships between donors, recipients and stakeholders along with the vision of mutual benefit, common good, inclusiveness as well as equality and the right of the peoples and the nations as its founding principles. It is my humble belief that the universality and timelessness of the spirit and principles must have served as one of the major reasons for the resiliency of “harmonious federation” of the Colombo Plan, despite the fact that the world has witnessed a caldron of major changes over the last seven decades since its establishment.
As the center of gravity shifts towards the Indo-Pacific region most tellingly, where the greater majority of the member states of the Colombo Plan are the stakeholders, the growing relevance of the founding principles of the Colombo Plan merit renewed appreciation. As observed earlier in my remarks of the historical account of the International Cooperation Day, Japanese Official Development Assistance, to be sure, is inseparably connected to the same lofty principles of the Colombo Plan -the principles that are deeply rooted in the spirit of mutual cooperation and compassion- which, with its unchallengeable humanity, will guide us a long way into the future, as it has done in the past.
Thank you very much for your kind attention.