Iran has urged Sri Lankan banks to expand to Tehran and expressed interest in joint ventures in Sri Lanka’s infrastructure, pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors.
The offer was made by new Iranian ambassador Mohammad Nabi Hassanipour, during a recent meeting in Colombo with Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen.
“I see that there is a need to increase the capacity of Sri Lanka’s oil refining and I believe the Sri Lankan refinery needs an extension. Iran is also looking at conducting single country format ‘Iranian Trade Fairs’ in Colombo,” he said, in details of the meeting released by the Ministry through a press release.
Minister Bathiudeen said Iran and Sri Lanka should enhance Business to Business (B2B) level cooperation further. Linkages between business chambers in both countries are the key to achieve this, he said.
Both the ambassador and the Minister also explored preliminary groundwork towards the next session of the bilateral Joint Economic Commission meeting to be held in Tehran in 2012. Both countries have already expressed their interest to this end especially when the Iranian Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Seyyed Amir Mansour Borghai took part in a special dinner meeting hosted by Minister Bathiudeen in July in Colombo. |
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