News
NSC urges support for foreign investments here
The Executive Committee of the National Shoora Council (NSC) wants countries worldwide including the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to make and encourage direct investments in Sri Lanka in agriculture, dairy farming, fisheries, and housing projects preferably in collaboration with existing Sri Lankan developers.
NSC’s newly elected head M.M. Zuhair, President’s Counsel said that prospective private sector investors should be supported to make direct investments in Sri Lanka through the Board of Investments (BOI) and that the NSC, a non-profit civil society organisation, would facilitate in the national interest collaboration with existing Sri Lankan companies of repute across the board. Government-level investments could be facilitated to discuss investments at government to government level, an NSC media release said.
NSC would also urged the government to create an attractive environment to encourage investments here, presently affected by high electricity and labor costs. The civil society organization has decided to suggest that the country’s President visit Riyadh and invite Saudi government investments in Sri Lanka and also meet with the heads of the OIC and other high-profile entities. These are necessary to encourage closer cooperation to support the country’s efforts to develop and overcome the hitherto critical economic sectors. That would help other Middle Eastern countries too to come in, the NSC release said.
Sri Lanka presently receives annually the highest foreign exchange earnings from mainly the Middle East, with employment remittances topping US $ 6.58 billion in 2024, without any debt constraints, while the highest volume of remittances came last year from Kuwait, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar!
Merchandise exports meanwhile earned US $12.78 billion as against imports costing US $ 18.84 billion in 2024 adding a foreign exchange liability of US $ 6.06 in the import-export sector. Tourism brought in US $ 3.17 billion while IT earnings were US $ (point).85billion in 2024.
Progressive sectors of the country should presently support genuine governmental efforts to overcome the economic sector bottlenecks and help achieve self-sufficiency and higher export targets, the NSC President has said.
Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya participated in a high-level dialogue titled “Tourism as Soft Power and Diplomatic Capital” held at the Euronews Hub, Piz Buin Davos, on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum on January 20.
The session explored how tourism functions as a strategic instrument of diplomacy by strengthening international trust, cultural exchange, and regional cooperation through mobility and people-to-people engagement. The Prime Minister shared the panel with Mr. Kuban Omiraliyev, Secretary General of the Organization of Turkic States and Mr. Meshari Alnahar – CEO Aseer Investment Company, Saudi Arabia.
Addressing global trends, the Prime Minister emphasized that Sri Lanka is an example of hope, recovery and resilience in a world of conflict demonstrating how tourism can play a critical role in a changing global environment particularly amid climate shocks, geopolitical instability, and uneven economic recovery. She noted that tourism is not only an economic sector but also a vital diplomatic bridge that supports livelihoods, builds relationships and connects people.
Drawing on Sri Lanka’s recent experience, she highlighted the country’s strong tourism recovery despite multiple crises, including the impact of Cyclone Ditwah. Transparent crisis management and strategic engagement with international partners helped sustain visitor confidence, resulting in record tourist arrivals even in challenging circumstances.
The Prime Minister also underscored the importance of green and climate friendly tourism infrastructure and underlined that Sri Lanka welcomes long term investment in tourism. She pointed out that tourism supports millions of jobs worldwide and that inclusive policies are essential to ensure fair opportunities, particularly for women and vulnerable communities.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
During an operation conducted in the dark hours of 20 Jan 26, the Sri Lanka Navy seized two (02) Indian fishing boats and apprehended seven (07) Indian fishermen while they were poaching in Sri Lankan waters, off Kovilan, Jaffna.
The seized boats and Indian fishermen was to be handed over to the Fisheries Inspector of Myliddy, Jaffna for onward legal proceedings.
Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya participated in a series of high-level bilateral meetings on January 20 on the sidelines of the 56th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland.
The Prime Minister attended a productive bilateral meeting with Mr. Jozef Síkela, European Commissioner for International Partnerships. During the discussion, both sides focused on strengthening Sri Lanka–EU cooperation and advancing mutual interests.
Prime Minister Amarasuriya also met with Mr. Masato Kanda, President and Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Asian Development Bank (ADB), at the WEF Congress Centre. The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss ongoing engagement and future collaboration between Sri Lanka and the ADB.
In addition, the Prime Minister held discussions with Mr. Hassan El Houry, Chairman of Menzies Aviation, where opportunities for collaboration in aviation services and connectivity were explored.
The Prime Minister also participated in a high-level dialogue at the Global Tourism Forum held at the Euronews Hub, Piz Buin, Davos, as part of the World Economic Forum engagements.
Dr. Anil Jayantha, Minister of Labour, and the Deputy Minister of Finance were also present at these meetings.
[Prime Minister’s Media Division]
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