COLOMBO
\nSri Lanka\u2019s new government has launched a nationwide project aiming to make it the cleanest country in Asia and enforce the principles of environmental justice.
\nPresident Anura Kumara Dissanayake kicked off the \u201cClean Sri Lanka\u201d initiative on New Year\u2019s Day, saying it would be focused on restoring the island nation\u2019s environmental system.
\nDissanayake, during a launching ceremony at the presidential secretariat in Colombo on Wednesday, said: \u201cThis endeavor goes beyond merely cleaning up the environment.
\n\u201cIt aspires to restore the deeply eroded and deteriorated social and environmental fabric of our motherland. We aim to create cleanliness and rejuvenation across all sectors of society.\u201d
\nHe added: \u201cEvery citizen must take responsibility for fulfilling their respective duties to ensure the success of this collective vision.\u201d
\nThe program is one of the main priorities of his administration, alongside poverty eradication and digital transformation.
\nDissanayake assumed the top job in September and further consolidated his grip on power after his National People\u2019s Power alliance won a majority in the legislature in November.
\nHe is leading Sri Lanka as the nation continues to reel from the 2022 economic crisis \u2014 its worst since independence in 1948.
\n\u201cOur firm resolution is to usher in transformative change for our country this year,\u201d he said. \u201cThis year marks the start of a new political culture in our country, as we lay the necessary foundations for its development.\u201d
\nThe \u201cClean Sri Lanka\u201d program is a part of efforts that will be overseen by an 18-member task force.
\nWhen Dissanayake announced the initiative last month, he said it aimed \u201cto make Sri Lanka the cleanest country in the Asian region.\u201d
\nThe \u201cClean Sri Lanka\u201d official website says it aims to engage communities to keep public spaces safe and clean, streamline waste disposal across the country and ensure that its world-famous beaches are clean.
\nIt also seeks to fight corruption, promote accessible infrastructure for people with disabilities, improve air and water quality, and reduce the nation\u2019s carbon footprint.
\n\u201cIf we do not make ours a cleaner country, our roads to be safer, how can we expect to develop tourism? Unless we make our public spaces disabled-friendly, how can we get them involved in the economy,\u201d it stated, adding that the initiative was crucial to help Sri Lanka rebuild its battered economy.
\nSri Lanka\u2019s poor waste management was under global spotlight in 2022 when several elephants \u2014 which are endangered in the country \u2014 were found dead after consuming plastic in an open landfill in the eastern village of Pallakkadu.
\nThe nation of 22 million people generates more than 1.5 million tonnes of plastic waste annually but recycles only 3 percent, compared to the world average of 7.2 percent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
COLOMBO Sri Lanka\u2019s new government has launched a nationwide project aiming to make it the cleanest country in Asia and enforce the principles of environmental justice. President Anura Kumara Dissanayake kicked off the \u201cClean Sri Lanka\u201d initiative on New Year\u2019s Day, saying it would be focused on restoring the island nation\u2019s environmental system. Dissanayake, during […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":453186,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-453159","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n