Colombo, May 23 (IANS): The Sri Lankan cabinet has approved a proposal by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to grant incentives to businesses with strategic importance that will commence operation at the Colombo Port City, a spokesman said here on Tuesday.

Cabinet spokesman Bandula Gunawardena told reporters that the Port City is an important part of the island nation's attempts to attract foreign investment, which is crucial to stabilising and modernizing the economy, reports Xinhua news agency.

Spanning 269 hectares of reclaimed land from the sea, the Port City will comprise five precincts including the Financial District, Central Park Living, Island Living, the Marina and the International Island.

Primary and secondary businesses that are strategically important to the Port City have been identified, according to Gunawardena.

Colombo International Financial City is a special economic zone and International Financial Centre which is currently under construction on reclaimed land adjacent to the Galle Face Green.

The land reclamation work had been completed as of January 2018.

The project is part of China's Belt and Road initiative.