Sri Lanka mulls future of Rajapakse's white elephants
From a multi-million dollar airport ignored by airlines to a lavish cricket stadium rejected by players, Sri Lanka’s new government is mulling the future of a string of white elephants.
Former president Mahinda Rajapakse ordered the state-of-the-art facilities built in his southern home town of Hambantota in extensive efforts to turn his rural constituency into a regional business hub.
Vast revenues were channelled into the vanity projects, mostly named after the former strongman who ruled the tropical island for a decade and was determined to keep the loss-making ventures open.