Package for foreign delegations at Expo

Sri Lankan High Commissioner in Pakistan Air Chief Marshal (Retd) Jayalath Weerakkody on Wednesday invited Pakistani businessmen to take part in an international expo scheduled for March as it would offer unique trade and investment opportunities to foreign businessmen.

Weerakkody was speaking at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI). The High Commissioner said the Sri Lankan Government had designed a package for foreign businessmen and that LCCI members should avail themselves of this opportunity.

He said the country was in bad shape during the period from 2005 to 2009 due to internal strife, but after 2009, Sri Lanka made marvellous progress and registered 50 percent economic growth and per capita income of $2,600.

The Sri Lankan Government was making all-out efforts to take the trade volume with Pakistan to one billion dollars, he said.

The Chamber's President said that Pakistan and Sri Lanka were members of SAARC and have strong diplomatic relations and trade and defence ties. Pakistan was the second largest trading partner of Sri Lanka in the SAARC region with total bilateral trade increasing by 24 percent, from $ 273 million in 2009 to $ 337 million in 2010.

In the same period, Pakistan's exports to Sri Lanka grew by 31 percent, reaching $ 284 million from $ 217 million. He said that in contrast to growth in exports, there had been a sliding trend in imports from Sri Lanka, which fell from $ 66 million to $ 53 million during 2008 and 2010.

He said the actual trade potential is yet to be fully explored between the two countries and bilateral trade could grow up to $ 2 billion by the end of this year.