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| Sunday, 12 October 2003 |
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FTA with Maldives Sri Lanka will sign a Free Trade Agreement with Maldives to further strengthen the economic and trade ties between the two countries. "The agreement will be concluded before the end of the year and will help further promote and strengthen regional trade," said Minister of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Ravi Karunanayake in an exclusive interview with the Sunday Observer. The Minister will lead a delegation to Maldives next week where he is expected to meet Maldives' President Maohammed Abdul Gayoom, Trade, and Industry Minister Abdulla Yameen, Planning and National Development MinisterIbrahim Hussain Zaki and other government officials to discuss matters relating to the FTA. Answering a question on whether the September 20 prison incident in Maldives will have any effect on the FTA, the Minister said: "No, September 20 was an isolated incident and never spread beyond that day. Maldives has order and peace and the two countries have enjoyed friendly ties for years. Sri Lankans invest in Maldives while Maldivians invest in Sri Lanka. "Brisk trading is going on as usual and there is no disturbance at all. We have gone through bad experiences for 23 years, but we do not want our neighbour to go through that experience. Therefore, we will extend our fullest cooperation and support to them," he said. Sri Lanka is the second most important export market for Maldives and Maldives is Sri Lanka's 19th largest trading partner. The trade balance between the two countries has always been favourable towards Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan companies do business in Maldives in the areas of tourism, banking, insurance, credit cards, management consulting and manufacturing. A large number of Sri Lankans have gained employment in many of these ventures and elsewhere. Close to 9000 Sri Lankans work in Maldives and they together with Lankan businesses in Maldives contribute to the Lankan economy. The biggest investors too have invested substantially in Sri Lanka in areas such as the hotel industry, education and manufacturing. |
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