The 29^th Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka – Canada Business Council (SLCBC) of The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce was held recently at Ceylon Chamber of Commerce.

The Chief Guest of the event was the High Commissioner for Canada, David McKinnon, who is also the Patron of the Council. SLCBC was launched on 14^th August, 1991 under the aegis of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce. The prime objectives of the Council are promotion of trade/ investment, services, tourism and joint ventures between Sri Lanka and Canada.

Rajah Abeysinghe, CEO, Hydromec International (Pvt) Ltd was elected as the President of the Council for the year 2020/2021.

In his address Abeysinghe mentioned that “over the last 29 years, the SLSBC has seen a continuous growth under the leadership of successive Presidents along with the respective management committees. With the renewed development agenda between our two countries, our council will have to play an important role by lobbying the Sri Lankan government to create an inclusive environment to increase bilateral trade and investment between Canada and Sri Lanka, as well as create the required awareness of the market opportunities that exist for Sri Lankan firms.”

The High Commissioner for Canada, David McKinnon, stated that “Canada has been a long term partner of Sri Lanka with Canadians and Canadian owned companies responsible for creating jobs for thousands of Sri Lankans and contributing to economic prosperity. Despite the setbacks of the pandemic and the tragic Easter attacks of 2019, the fundamental strengths of Sri Lanka remain—an educated and resilient population, strong relationships with countries in South Asia and the wider region, fantastic natural attributes and a strategic location astride major trade routes in the fastest growing region in the world. If Sri Lanka remains outward looking and open to trade and investment, there are exciting opportunities emerging here and an appetite among Canadian firms to be a part of it.”

Priyantha Padmasiri and Ong Jhon Seon were elected as Vice Presidents while Lionel Silva serves as the Immediate Past President.

Abans PLC, Ceyline Shipping Ltd, MAC Holdings, Mclarens Holdings Ltd, Samsons Rubber Products (Pvt) Ltd were elected from the membership to serve on the Executive Committee of the Council.

Further details regarding membership of the Council and its activities can be obtained from the Secretariat of the Sri Lanka – Canada Business Council of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, No. 50, Navam Mawatha, Colombo 2. E-mail: dinithi@chamber.lk or Tel.: 011-5588861, 5588800.

Seated from L-R: Mr. Priyantha Chandrasekera, Vice President; Mr. Rajah Abeysinghe, President; David McKinnon, High Commissioner for Canada in Sri Lanka; Mr. Lionel D C Silva, Immediate Past President; Mr. Ong Jhon Seon, Vice President and Ms. Dinithi Dias, Manager, Business Councils.

Standing from L-R: Ms. Avanti Coonghe, Trade Commissioner;  Dr. (Mrs.) Saroshi Dubash, Abans PLC; Mr. Mahesh Kurukulasuriya, Mclarens Holdings Ltd;  Mr. Sajith Rajapaksa, Samson Rubber Products (Pvt) Ltd; Mr. Gayan Maddumarachchi, MAC Holdings (Pvt) Ltd; Mr. Gayan Gunawardena, Ceyline Shipping Ltd.

Not in the Picture: Mr. Harith Jayasuriya, MAC Holdings (Pvt) Ltd.