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O L Ameer Ajwad-Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Oman, Nandika Buddhipala-President-NCCSL, Eng. Redha Bin Juma Al Saleh-Chairman-OCCI, Deepal Nelson-Senior Deputy President-NCCSL. U Ahamed Razee-Director-Economic Affairs-Foreign Ministry exchanges souvenirs at the business forum
First ever high level business delegation from Oman visited Sri Lanka during first week of March 2022 on an invitation extended by the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka, to the Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI).
The delegation was led by Eng. Redha Bin Juma Al Saleh, Chairman of the OCCI. The members of the delegation included OCCI Board member and Chairman of the Committee on Services and Information Technology Ali Hamdan Hassan Al Ajmi, Board member and the Chairman of South A’ Branch of OCCI Sharqia Governorate Anwar Hamed Said Al Sinani, Khalid Mohammed Salim Al Saeed. Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Sultanate of Oman O L Ameer Ajwad was accompanying the high-level delegation during their meetings in Sri Lanka together with Chairpersons and CEOs of leading Omani private sector companies.
Business gathering – Oman delegations and Sri Lankan counterparts
The purpose of the visit was to explore and enhance trade and investment opportunities between Sri Lanka and the Sultanate of Oman. The visit was envisaged to open a new chapter for private sector cooperation between the two countries.
During the Business forum, Eng. Readh Juma Mohammed Ali Al Saleh, Chairman of Oman Chamber, said he look forward to an expansion of commercial and investment exchange, which experienced a stage of fluctuation over recent years.
Further he said by 2021, commercial exchange between the two countries stood at about $113 million, said Al Saleh, noting that the volume of exports accounted for $99 million and import $13 million. In 2020, commercial exchange between Oman and Sri Lanka stood at $44 million, compared to $75 million in 2019, Al Saleh added.
Meanwhile, Nandika Buddhipala, President of the National Chamber, said that commercial ties between Sri Lanka and Oman are deep-rooted and that these relations have to be utilized to bolster business and investments. He hoped that such forums will develop economic and investment relations between the two countries.
L Ameer Ajwad, Ambassador of Sri Lanka to the Sultanate of Oman said that the two countries boast a wide range of resources that can be utilized to expand investment and commercial exchange between their respective private sectors and business communities.
The business forum included presentations by BOI Sri Lanka and Colombo Ports City Project rolled out investment opportunities available in Sri Lanka, notably in economic sectors and the Port City of Colombo. Presentation by the OCCI that displayed investment opportunities available in Oman, namely in industrial, commercial, tourism, logistics and economic zones and free zones.
National Chamber President further stated that the business communities of both countries were connected with each other through B2B meetings and Business Forum conducted online in July 2021, facilitated by O L Ameer Ajwad, Sri Lankan Ambassador in Oman, such interactions paved the way for physical meeting between the Entrepreneurs of the Countries today.
During the visit, the delegation had meetings with the Chairperson of Sri Lanka Association for Software and Services Companies (SLASSCOM), Chairman of Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka and the President of the NCCSL. The delegation also undertaken field visits to the Colombo Port City and met with several local top companies.
B2B Meetings conducted at the National Chamber Auditorium Saturday, April 2, 2022 – 01:00
