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FM
asks Japanese investors to tap Indo-Lanka FTA Minister Kadirgamar expressed these views when he addressed members of the Japan-Sri Lanka Business Cooperation Committee (JSBCC) on Thursday during his official visit to Japan. Citing Sri Lanka's Free Trade Agreement with India as a primary incentive, Mr. Kadirgamar said that Japanese business enterprises in Sri Lanka should be looking to tap this resource, a Foreign Ministry news release said. The Minister also drew the investors' attention to the importance of small and medium enterprises to the rural masses in Sri Lanka and the rest of the sub-continent. Explaining the purpose of his visit, Mr. Kadirgamar said his motive was to strengthen Sri Lanka's relations with Japan and promote new openings through intellectual exchanges and cultural links. Unveiling plans for a large Sri Lankan cultural exhibition in Japan next year, the Minister asked for support from the Japanese business community. Participants at the talk said that they did not see any concerns about investing in Sri Lanka. One investor in particular saw Sri Lanka as the gateway to South Asia for Japanese businesses and pledged to build a research centre in Sri Lanka to expand intellectual cooperation between the two countries. The participants, recalling three decades of Japanese investment in Sri Lanka, expressed their gratitude to Sri Lanka for the assistance given to them and said they looked forward to continued cooperation. Companies represented at the talk included Noritake, Mitsui Engineering and Shipbuilding, Mitsui Mining, Sanyo Food Products, Tree of Life, Japan Tea Association, Japan Asia Investment Company and Kajima Corporation, according to the Foreign Ministry release. Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi said Japan was studying a proposal to provide a grant under the cultural grant aid programme for the World Heritage site of Sigiriya. It will send a mission to Sri Lanka in this regard. |
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