Technology entrepreneur Sanjiva Weerawarana has raised concerns over a Rs. 173.86 million consultancy contract approved by the Cabinet for the Sustainable Tourism Sector Development Programme.
Financed via a US$30 million Asian Development Bank loan, the contract was awarded to M/s Resources Development Consultants Ltd. in association with M/s Novel Interdisciplinary Consulting Enterprise Ltd.
Posting on X, Weerawarana described certain aspects of the consultancy arrangement as "fishy."
Background
Addressing the weekly Cabinet media briefing, Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath explained that fifteen consultancy firms had initially submitted Expressions of Interest for the development project.
He noted that six firms were invited to submit full proposals following evaluation, with five ultimately submitting complete bids before the final selection was made.
He added that the consultancy would provide the detailed planning and implementation support needed to advance ADB-funded tourism infrastructure in key locations.
Website anomalies
Weerawarana specifically questioned Novel Interdisciplinary Consulting Enterprise, pointing out irregularities on their official website.
He noted that the domain had been registered in March 2025 and that the site failed to load properly, requiring developer tools to scroll past an Arabic form.
Sharing screenshots of the firm's management, past projects, and testimonials, Weerawarna raised doubts over the authenticity of the information displayed on the website.
Conflict of interest
Weerawarana highlighted further red flags, pointing out spelling errors in executive job titles and questionable client reviews displayed on the website.
He added that public profiles linked to directors indicated one was serving as an ADB procurement consultant, while another was listed as a biotechnology general manager.
He stressed that these discrepancies warranted immediate examination by senior government officials and relevant procurement oversight authorities.
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