In addition to the Bank, the Agence Française de Dévelopement(AFD) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) are also contributing to the national strategic cities program and focus on Anuradhapura and Trincomalee. The Bank is taking a leading role in terms of setting out the overall framework and approach for identifying, planning and development strategic cities investment, and is closely collaborating with AFD in this program. 

According to the World Bank Sri Lanka’s secondary cities are growing rapidly and have an opportunity to further contribute to the country’s competitiveness while providing a high quality of life for their residents.

To help realize these goals, the Strategic Cities project is working with partners and supporting Kandy, Galle, and Jaffna to improve their urban services inclusive of traffic management, water supply, connectivity, drainage, tourism planning, as well as improving access to public spaces.

In these cities, the project is conducted in consultation and coordination with stakeholders through a participatory approach. The project is under implementation and may create temporary inconveniences, but will provide lasting benefits for both residents and visitors, states the World Bank.