Korean ambassador promises to smoothen out Covid bottlenecks holding up employment of SL youth

The Korean Ambassador to Sri Lanka Woonjin Jeong has assured Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena that the facilities required for the Sri Lankan youth who are eligible for employment in Korea to travel there will be provided shortly.

He was speaking at a discussion on the delays faced by young people who are eligible for jobs in Korea, chaired by Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena at the Foreign Ministry on Wednesday (16). State Minister of Foreign Employment Promotion and Market Diversification Priyankara Jayaratne, Secretary to the State Minister of Foreign Employment Promotion and Market Diversification Suntharam Arumainayaham, Foreign Employment Bureau Chairman Kamal Ratwatte, Director Nimal Thibbatumunuwa and Deputy General Manager Mangala Randeniya also participated in the discussion.

The Foreign Minister pointed out that those who had qualified for jobs in Korea had been expecting to leave for jobs in Korea for a long time; however, it has been delayed day by day due to the COVID pandemic. The Minister also pointed out that they were under severe mental stress due to that.

The Korean Ambassador to Sri Lanka explained the position of the Korean Government and said that it had been planned to provide employment opportunities in Korea to all those who were eligible for employment there. He said there was a delay in providing those opportunities due to the COVID pandemic; however, assured that he was focused on sending them to Korea at the earliest available opportunity.

He also said that the Korean government was planning to assist in the development of the agricultural sector in Sri Lanka.

The discussions also focused on several matters including increase of employment opportunities for Sri Lankan youth in Korea and enhancing economic cooperation between the two countries.