The sixth EU-Sri Lanka investor dialogue was held at the Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade recently. Many of the outstanding matters were resolved through dialogue and the efforts of the Sri Lanka and EU authorities.
Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade, Malik Samarawickrama who chaired the sessions and led the Sri Lanka delegation said, “We are making an effort on our side to clear all issues. I thank the Ambassadors for their support and cooperation. I am very pleased that we have made considerable progress in resolving outstanding issues and building up our relations with the European Union on a solid foundation.”
Ambassador of the European Union, Tun Lai Margue said, “We are very pleased to meet again and I agree with the Minister that we have managed to resolve many of the issues that existed between Sri Lanka and European Union.
“Among the matters which were discussed was the need to always ensure transparency when it comes to tender procedures. This was very important to build confidence in the European Union for Sri Lanka. It is also a factor that impacts significantly on the attraction of FDI inflows to a country,” he said.
Secretary Ministry of Development Strategies and International Trade, Chandanie Wijewardena, Director General of the BOI, Duminda Ariyasinghe and Board Member of the BOI, Mangala Yapa were also present.
Representatives of the Department of Public Finance, Ministry of Digital Infrastructure, Sri Lanka Customs, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Ports and Shipping, Civil Aviation Authority of Sri Lanka, Inland Revenue Department, Department of Fiscal Policy and the Department of Emigration and Immigration were also present..
Ambassador to the European Union Tun Lai Margue was assisted by Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, Jorn Rohde, the Charge‘d’ Affaires of Romania, Victor Chiujdea and senior diplomats of European Union countries.
The event was coordinated by Deputy, Political, Trade and Commercial Section, EU mission in Colombo, Roshan Lyman.
Both sides also discussed other matters such as the need for Sri Lanka to accept digital signatures on documents and the promotion of paperless communication. Other matters for discussion included issues relating to specific companies such as payments of dues and the acceptance by Sri Lanka of classifications of products of the European Union such as the term “energy”on food and drinks labels as well as colour coding to identify sugar levels in food and beverage products. The question of noise pollution at a resort hotel was also discussed and a solution was sought.
At a macroeconomic and strategic level the European Union represents an important source of investment for Sri Lanka.
In the period 2005-2016, EU enterprises operating under BOI invested an estimated US$2.5 billion in Sri Lanka.The bulk sectors for investment were manufacturing (other than textile and apparel) valued at US$ 557 million; textile and apparel manufacture (US$ 327 million); telecommunications (US$ 617 million): Airline services (US$ 325 million); and power generation (US$ 255 million).
The leading European Union countries in terms of FDI to Sri Lanka are the United Kingdom with 90 projects under BOI (of which 54 exporters), Germany (42 projects, 31 exporters), the Netherlands (29 projects, 14 exporters), Sweden (20 projects, 13 exporters) Italy (18 projects, 14 exporters, France (13 projects, 10 exporters) and Belgium (10 projects of which six exporters).The EU-Sri Lanka dialogue is vital forum that offers considerable opportunities for attracting European investment to Sri Lanka.