A Policy to Build a Transparent, Digital, and Corruption-Free Colombo.
Corruption, delays, and inefficiency in city services have eroded public trust. Smart City, Clean System puts an end to outdated, paper-based governance by fully digitising permits, payments, tracking, and service delivery. This initiative ensures transparency, accountability, and access — so citizens can see where their money goes, and how their council serves them.
The Vision
Colombo deserves a city council that works as hard as its people. Today, corruption, delays, and hidden dealings stop progress. We’re going to fix this by digitising every service, every approval, and every rupee spent. This initiative will make the Colombo Municipal Council a paperless, people-first, fully trackable system.
The Core Goals
- Efficiency – Faster services with no delays or paperwork shuffling
- Transparency – Citizens can track every rupee and decision
- Corruption-Free – No space for middlemen, unofficial payments, or hidden files
Where Corruption and Delay Happen Now
These are the key areas within the council that are vulnerable to corruption, favouritism, and inefficiency:
1. Permits & Approvals (e.g. building permits, business licenses)
2. Contract Awards and Procurement
3. Public Market Stall Distribution
4. Garbage Collection and Street Maintenance Monitoring
5. Revenue Collection and Fee Payments
6. Citizen Complaints and Service Requests
The Digital Council Solutions
1. Online Permit & Approval System
- Apply online for building approvals, trade licenses, vending spots, etc.
- Track applications with reference numbers and view timelines publicly
- Automatic rejection of delayed files, with SMS/email updates
2. Digital Land & Housing Registry
- All applications scored on clear, public criteria (income, family size, urgency)
- Online application and transparent queue
- No middlemen or private handling of files
3. E-Procurement & Contract Transparency
- All tenders published online with full timelines and documents
- Winning contractor, project cost, and deadline made public
- QR codes at project sites link to cost and status info
4. Fair Vendor and Market Stall System
- Digital lottery for stall allocations
- Yearly renewals based on clear, measurable performance
- Zero tolerance for unofficial payments or favours
5. Real-Time Public Works Tracker
- GPS tracking for garbage trucks, drain teams, and street sweepers
- Live dashboards for residents to monitor service delivery
- WhatsApp reporting for missed collections or bad service
6. Cashless Payments Only
- All fees, fines, stall rent, and license payments to go digital
- No cash handling at service points
- Receipts generated instantly and visible in public collection reports
7. Open Citizen Feedback & Complaint Portal
- Online and mobile platform for service requests and complaints
- Trackable complaint ID with updates
- Escalation for unresolved cases
- Monthly performance scoreboard for each ward
8. Public Complaint Management System
- Set up secure complaint drop boxes at every ward office and key municipal buildings
- Residents can write and submit service complaints in Sinhala, Tamil, or English
- Each complaint will be logged, tracked, and responded to with updates available at the ward office
- Unresolved issues will be escalated to higher officials with fixed resolution timelines
What the Public Will See
- A public dashboard on a city website and council screens:
- Spending by department
- Complaints received and resolved
- Live project updates
- Garbage and maintenance activity maps