SL steps up measures to further ties with the Middle-East

Sri Lanka has stepped up measures to elevate its relations with the countries in the Middle East in a bid to boost economic ties, a Minister said yesterday.

Money, Capital Markets and State Enterprise Reforms Ajith Nivard Cabraal are currently on a tour of the middle-eastern region to explore possibilities of furthering economic cooperation. The Minister told Daily Mirror over the phone from Qatar last night that he had fruitful meetings with officials and the ministers of Oman and Qatar during the last couple of days.

Asserting that no specific decision was taken, he said the areas of cooperation were flagged. Investment in tourism and government securities and upskilling of Sri Lankans seeking employment in the region were among the areas where attention was focused on.

He said bilateral economic cooperation with these countries remains way below the potential at the moment.

“There is potential for us to increase our cooperation. We will do it. We find a great reservoir of goodwill for Sri Lanka in these countries,” he said.

The Minister went there as the special representative of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. He visited Oman from April 7 to 10, 2021 carrying a special message addressed to Sultan Haitham bin Tarik of Oman.

The visit also coincided with the celebration of the 40th Anniversary of Diplomatic Relations between Sri Lanka and the Sultanate of Oman which falls this year.

Minister Cabraal handed over the Prime Minister’s special message to Sayyid Asaad bin Tarik al Said, Deputy Prime Minister for International Relations and Cooperation Affairs and the Personal Representative of Sultan Haitham bin Tarik during an audience last Friday. Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the Sultanate Ameer Ajwad accompanied the State Minister.

Embassy of Sri Lanka in Muscat also organised a series of meetings for Minister Cabraal and the accompanying 12-member Sri Lankan delegation from the Central Bank and the State as well as private banks of Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka delegation comprising of State Minister Cabraal, Ambassador Ameer Ajwad, Deputy Governor Dammika Nanayakkara, Superintendent of Public Debt Dr M.Z.M Aazim and Director Economic Research Development Dr C. Amarasekara, met with the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion of the Sultanate of Oman, Qais bin Mohamed Al Yousef and discussed a range of areas for mutual economic cooperation including trade and investment between the two countries.

The delegation also met with the Undersecretary for the Ministry of Finance, Abdullah Al Harthy, Chairman of the Tax Authority, Sai Nassir Al-Shukaily, Deputy Chairman of Oman Investments Authority (OIA) at the Ministry of Finance of Oman and explored areas that have synergies for bilateral collaboration between the two countries.

The Sri Lanka delegation also met with the Executive President of the Central Bank of Oman, Tahir Salim Al Amri together with the Vice Presidents, discussed the further enhancement of cooperation between the Central Banks of both countries and agreed to sign an MoU between the two banks in the near future.

The Sri Lanka delegation led by State Minister also had a fruitful discussion with the Chief Executive Officer of Muscat Bank, Waleed K. Al Hashar and engaged with other prominent private banks in Oman namely Bank of Dhofar, National Bank of Oman and the Bank of Sohar.

The Sri Lankan embassy also organised a productive investment promotion meeting with the Chief Executive Officer of Madayn and the Chairman of Shumookh Investment and Services of Oman Hilal Al-Hasani and his high-level delegation in a move to attract foreign direct investments to Sri Lanka. (Kelum Bandara)