KHALEEJ TIMES, Wednesday, Sep 23, 2020 | Safar 06, 1442
SCCI explores opportunities for economic partnerships with Sri Lanka
Emirates:
The Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCI) is keen on boosting ties
with Sri Lankan business communities and this was explored at a high-level
meeting held on Tuesday.
Abdullah Sultan Al Owais, chairman of SCCI, received a Sri Lankan high-level
delegation headed by Malraj De Silva, Sri Lankan ambassador to the UAE,
accompanied by Nalinda Wijerathna, consul-general of Sri Lanka in Dubai and
the Northern Emirates.
Present at the meeting were Mohammad Ahmed Amin Al Awadi, SCCI
director-general, Fatima Al Mokarrab, director of International Relations
Department, and Lalu Samuel, chairman of the representative committee of the
industry sector business group.
The meeting touched on the prospects for joint cooperation between the two
sides, increasing trade exchange, enhancing business partnerships between
business communities in Sharjah and Sri Lanka, and intensifying meetings
between commercial delegations to speed up the performance of business
sectors in various commercial, industrial, and service sectors.
The two sides discussed strengthening cooperation in industry, commerce,
tourism, and education sectors, introducing investment opportunities
available in both countries, and organising joint events to make the most of
the important competitive economic elements in Sharjah and Sri Lanka.
"Such meetings are of particular importance as they help introduce
businessmen to the available investment opportunities, strengthen bilateral
and economic relations, and increase trade exchange between the two
countries," said Al Owais.
The Sri Lankan Ambassador noted that the UAE is among the top 10 countries
in the volume of trade with Sri Lanka in various economic sectors such as
real estate, infrastructure, food, and tourism sectors, calling the SCCI to
learn closely about areas of investment in his country, especially in the
agricultural, printing, publishing, education fields, and in particular, the
medical tourism which is witnessing a tremendous leap and enjoying advanced
investment components.
De Silva said: "The visit aims to further develop the bilateral cooperation
between the two sides, especially that UAE and Sri Lanka have a long history
of cooperation in economic field and trade exchange.
The Sri Lankan delegation toured the permanent exhibition of locally
manufactured products, where they were briefed on a wide range of products
that are locally manufactured by more than 180 firms and exhibited through
191 stands. It is worth noting that the value of non-oil imports from Sri
Lanka to the UAE amounted to $791.5 million, and the value of exports from
the UAE to Sri Lanka reached $124 million during the year 2019, while the
SCCI includes about 83 Sri Lankan registered companies.
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