British-Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce in London

To promote trade interests between Britain and Sri Lanka, the British - Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce was established recently at the Sri Lanka High Commission in London attended by Deputy Minister of Finance and Planning, Dr. Sarath Amunugama. President of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) Neville Reyner signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Secretary General/CEO of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC), Harin Malwatte, establishing the British - Sri Lanka Chamber of Commerce.

President, British Chambers of Commerce, Neville Reyner signs the MoU with Secretary General/CEO of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, Harin Malwatte

Malwatte said that there is an attractive investment climate in Sri Lanka with political stability, infrastructure development and improvements in the doing of business.

The Preferential Tariff Agreements (PTAs) enjoyed by SL - the Indo Lanka Free Trade Agreement, Pakistan Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement, SAARC Free Trade Agreement and the Asia Pacific Trade Agreement were highlighted as being conducive to investments.

Bilateral investment protection agreements supported by a constitutional guarantee provide strong protection to foreign investment. Sri Lanka has never defaulted nor has requested rescheduling of any of its international obligations.

He said that since the ending of the war, CCC has hosted 12 large investor missions in 2009 and 13 in 2010. In addition 9 delegations from India have been hosted by the Chamber.

This he mentioned was an indication of the investment interest in Sri Lanka.

The UK is not on the top 10 investment countries in 2009. He expressed the hope that by the end of 2011, the UK will be one of the top 10 investors in Sri Lanka.

Chairman of De La Rue PLC Nicholas Brooks, spoke of his experiences in investing in Sri Lanka.

His company was happy with the knowledge and competence of its staff and their high calibre. Staff turnover had been low with absenteeism being one percent. He encouraged British companies to invest in Sri Lanka with confidence.