SLPBC to enhance bilateral trade

The Sri Lanka-Pakistan Business Council (SLPBC) was set up in 1991 under the aegis of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce to promote trade, investment, tourism and services between Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

The Council held its 20th Annual General Meeting at the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce recently.

Managing Director of Merchant Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, Rohitha Thilakaratne was elected President of SLPBC for 2013-2014.

Thilakaratne said that the Council participated in various discussion sessions with the High Commission of Pakistan in Colombo and the Department of Commerce to develop trade between Sri Lanka and Pakistan during the past year. These discussions have contributed to FTA review meetings between the two Governments which resulted in many duty concessions benefiting Sri Lankan exporters. A key event of the Council was the visit to seventh Expo Pakistan, the largest trade fair in Pakistan, by a business delegation led by Thilakaratne.

During this visit an MoU was signed between the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce and the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Given the rapid growth potential in the leisure and pharmaceutical sectors, potential investors in Pakistan were invited to invest in Sri Lanka. Thilakaratne said that the Council will continue to act as a technical committee to further develop bi-lateral relationships between the two countries.