Abu Dhabi: The UAE-Sri Lanka joint committee concluded its activities in Abu Dhabi on Monday.
The UAE delegation was headed by Foreign Minister Shaikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan while the Sri Lankan delegation was led by Gamini Lakshman Peiries, Sri Lanka’s Minister of External Affairs.
In his opening address, Shaikh Abdullah cited the historic and strong relations between the UAE and Sri Lanka, which helped rapidly enhance cooperation in all fields. He also emphasised that the UAE is keen on being a key player in Sri Lanka’s development.
He pointed out that Sri Lanka is a strategic partner for the UAE, with bilateral trade reaching $1.5 billion (Dh5.5 billion) up to 2012, while UAE investments in Sri Lanka amounted to $440 million and 47 weekly flights between the two countries.
Shaikh Abdullah said that Sri Lanka’s strategy aims to increase foreign investments in the coming years, and that the objective of the committee is to discuss investment opportunities available in the UAE and ways to boost the investments of Sri Lankan companies operating in the country. He added that the committee also needs to work on encouraging Emirati companies to enter the Sri Lankan market.
For his part, Peiries thanked the UAE for hosting the joint committee meeting, which was set up as part of both countries’ framework to strengthen bilateral relations.
