88% of public construction works conducted by State

Paneetha Ameresekere 

Of the Rs 400 billion spent on public building construction works in 2017, which is the latest of such figures available, Rs 352 billion of such works were executed by State sector agencies, comprising 88 per cent of such investments, while a mere Rs 48 billion (12 per cent) was contracted to the private sector, Architect Russel Dandeniya told this reporter on 27 November (Friday).

However, considering the fact that the State sector employs a mere nine per cent (120) of all architects in the country, while the private sector more than 91 per cent (Over 1,200), this distribution is skewed, he said. 

“This also shows that the majority of Sri Lanka’s architects in the private sector, who have been trained on public funds are working below par and their potential is not being harnessed for the betterment of the public,” Dandeniya said. He further said that the State sector, comprising both public and semipublic institutions, comprises 1,020 of such institutions run with taxpayers’ money. They include institutions such as the Central Engineering Consultancy Bureau (CECB), Urban Development Authority (UDA),  National Physical Planning Department (NPPD), State Engineering Corporation (SEC),  Buildings Department, National Housing Development Authority (NHDA),  Moratuwa University, the Department of Archaeology and such like, he said. State sector professionals employed in such construction and construction-related works include architects, engineers, quantity surveyors and such like, Dandeniya said.