Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa

Ambassador of the Delegation of the European Union in Colombo Denis Chaibi along with the EU Ambassadors of Italy, the Netherlands and Charge d’ Affaires of the Embassies of Romania, Germany and France paid a courtesy call on Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena on 2 September 2020.

The Ambassadors offered congratulations to the Foreign Minister on his re-appointment and expressed the desire for continued closer cooperation. It was noted that Europe was the number one destination for Sri Lanka's exports and a major source of foreign direct investment and tourism. The Ambassadors said that Sri Lanka has performed remarkably well in controlling the spread of COVID-19 and as a result, they were confident that European tourists would return to Sri Lanka, once the airports were reopened.

The Ambassadors also discussed the status of EU development assistance to Sri Lanka and expressed the desire to support the government's economic development priorities. They briefed the Foreign Minister on the EU assisted ongoing projects in agriculture, vocational training, food safety, among others.

The Ambassadors also discussed proposed reforms and recent political developments following the election of the new government.

State Minister Tharaka Balasuriya and Foreign Secretary Admiral  Prof. Jayanath Colombage also participated in the meeting.

Foreign Ministry

Colombo

04 September 2020

Foreign Secretary Admiral Professor Colombage chairing the   21st Session of the Senior Officials’ Meeting (SoM) urged BIMSTEC Member States to embrace the “new normal, and adapt fast”, at the first virtual meeting held on 2 September 2020, in Colombo.

In his inaugural remarks, the Foreign Secretary stated that  global dynamics will not be the same after the COVID-19 pandemic as it has affected  all  States,  in various  degrees, as  it  transformed  from  a health crisis  to an economic and human crisis  as described by the  United Nations Secretary General António Guterres. In fact, he stated that the   crisis has affected the very fabric of   daily life of BIMSTEC Member States as  economic activities have slowed down with global and regional value chains disrupted, millions of people have lost their jobs with many pushed into poverty and  therefore the  meeting was timely, as it  is an opportunity to build on the assurances made by Heads of State of BIMSTEC Members on combatting the adverse effects of COVID-19 at the 23rd  Anniversary of the BIMSTEC Day held in June 2020. He said that their messages were clear and encouraging as the Leaders had reiterated and acknowledged the need to build a better and resilient   organization that could leverage regional cooperation in the recovery and rehabilitation process in post COVID-19.

Given that the region is home to 23% of the world population, Foreign Secretary stated that the devastating effects affecting the vulnerable sections can only cripple economies and divert resources that were once used for upward mobility in Member States. The collective GDP of US dollars 3 trillion, which was a benchmark prior to the pandemic, should not become an unattainable goal in the face of this devastation, he said and that the goal should be to surpass. Therefore, he stated that the sector driven Organization  should collectively promote trade and investment cooperation, strengthen energy cooperation, increase connectivity and people-to-people contact, focus on disaster management and public health, combat terrorism and extremism, deal with the adverse effects of climate change and work towards poverty alleviation.

As the lead country for Information, Technology and Innovation sector in BIMSTEC, Sri Lanka informed that it will put forward proposals that would enhance the use of technological tools in daily life to address post COVID-19 effects and also cater to the demand for internet based economic activities and that the proposed setting up of the BIMSTEC Technology Transfer Facility, in Colombo would further augment the work Sri Lanka proposes to undertake in the sector.

The 21st SoM was preceded by the Fourth BIMSTEC Permanent Working Committee (BPWC) chaired by Additional Secretary Economic Affairs Ambassador P M Amza of the Foreign Ministry.