Strengthening cooperation is vital to unlock the economic potential of Sri Lanka – Korean Ambassador

The 26th Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka–Korea Business Council (SLKBC) of The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce was held recently via MS Teams.

The SLKBC was inaugurated on November 4, 1982, in Colombo at the request of the late Lalith Athulathmudali with the objective of promoting trade, investments, tourism and services between Sri Lanka and Korea.

Mr. Priyantha Mendis, Managing Director, Alpha Tours (Pvt) Ltd (General Sales Agent for Korean Air in Sri Lanka & Maldives) was re-elected President of the Council for the year 2020/2021, while John Shiran Dissanayake, Chairman, Transmarine (Pvt) Ltd and Shamil Mendis, Chairman/Managing Director, Spear International (Pvt) Ltd were elected Vice Presidents.

Mahen Kariyawasan serves as the Immediate Past President and the Founder President, Prof. Lakshman Watawala as an Honorary member. Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Sri Lanka, Woonjin Jeong, said, “strengthening the commercial ties between the nations in harmony with the national policy is among my top priorities. It is noteworthy that amid this pandemic, Sri Lanka was the first South Asian country which held a nationwide election and Korea was the first country in the world to hold a nationwide election successfully. The global economy including that of Sri Lanka has experienced a negative impact since the covid-19 pandemic.

“Businesses have incurred grave losses due to the travel restrictions, disruptions in global supply chains and the imposition of numerous lockdowns. At this juncture, I will do the best to help achieve the economic goals of Sri Lanka together with the Sri Lanka-Korea business council members.

“The Sri Lankan economy will bounce back by attracting new foreign investors as it has shown strength and resilience in spite of past setbacks. Sri Lanka has great potential for growth and provides ample business opportunities with its strategic location, natural resources and high quality human resources which are very complimentary with the capital and technology of Korea. Strengthening the economic cooperation is thus vital unlock the economic potential of Sri Lanka.

“I invite Korean investors to explore opportunities especially in the key sectors including agriculture, renewable energy, infrastructure, LNG, digital economy and so on. There is more potential for business opportunities to expand between our two countries. In this regard, I hope that this esteemed Council too will work tirelessly to take our trade and economic ties to the next level and the Embassy, as always, will render its utmost assistance to you and work with you every step of the way until we realize this mutual goal”.

Priyantha Mendis, President of SLKBC reiterated that the main objectives of the Council is to promote trade and tourism between Sri Lanka and Korea, promote investment to Sri Lanka and encourage joint ventures, and to conduct joint meetings with Korean business organizations between the two countries.

“Bilateral Trade between Sri Lanka and Korea is around USD 400 million, mainly in favor of Korea. Anyway, for the past 15 years, the Korean government has offered employment opportunities to Lankan youth in the Manufacturing, Construction & Fisheries Sectors in Korea. At present there are around 30,000 Sri Lankans living in Korea, the biggest concentration of SL expatriate employees after Middle East.

With the commencement of direct services of Korea National Flag Carrier Korean Air to Sri Lanka in 2013, the Korean Tourist arrivals jumped to 16,000 in 2020 from around 4,000 earlier. Anyway Korean Air temporarily suspended its scheduled services in mid of March 2020 due to Covid-19 pandemic situation and will recommence its operations when the situation improves here and in Korea”, he said.

Abans Ltd, Ceyline Shipping Ltd, Senok Trade Combine (Pvt) Ltd, Shipping & Cargo Logistics (Pvt) Ltd and Southern Tea Producers (Pvt) Ltd were elected from the membership to serve on the Executive Committee of the Council.