The “China-Sri Lanka Joint Research and Demonstration Center for Water Technology (JRDC)” construction project was recently selected by the Ministry of Finance and Planning of Sri Lanka as one of the two best projects of the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) of Sri Lanka in 2020. Of 37 large-scale wading projects implemented, the NWSDB of Sri Lanka firstly conducted a preliminary assessment in terms of construction progress, financial progress, delivery efficiency and achievement of targets. Then the Ministry of Finance and Planning of Sri Lanka would give the final results after comprehensive evaluation. 

On March 26, 2015, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) signed an MoU under the witness of the presidents of both countries and decided to jointly build JRDC. The Ministry of Commerce of China approved to provide Chinese governmental aid for the construction of JRDC in December 21, 2016. The project includes the construction of JRDC building and the provision of advanced water quality analysis equipment. JRDC is located in the campus of the famous Peradeniya University in Sri Lanka, and will be used for the studies on the causing factors of chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology (CKDu), safe drinking water solutions and water environmental protection technologies. CAS granted full support to the project during the whole process of the project proposal, feasibility study, project approval, site selection, construction scheme selection, equipment selection and training, and project acceptance, which fully guaranteed the smooth implementation of the construction project. The project was accepted by the Ministry of Commerce of China in December 2020. The building has been handed over to the National Water Supply and Drainage Board (NWSDB) of Sri Lanka in 2021, and a quantitative real-time PCR is used in the virus screening in Sri Lanka.

The Sri Lankan government has decided to include JRDC into the government R & D organization sequence. The CAS will continue to play an important role in the operation of JRDC in the future, aiming to make it an important international science and education center in South Asia through the joint efforts of both sides.

China-Sri Lanka Joint Research and Demonstration Center for Water Technology

Office of International Cooperation, RCEES, CAS

June 11, 2021