Australia invited to expand investment opportunities in mineral sector

The government sought Australian expertise to expand the investment opportunities in the mineral sector of Sri Lanka during a visit by Deputy Minister Harsha de Silva on a visit to Australia last week following an invitation extended by the Australian government, a statement from Foreign Affairs ministry said. 

The discussions on the mineral industry were among the several agenda items for the Deputy Minister’s visit which sought to develop collaborative and innovative relationships between the two countries. The Deputy Minister was following up on the discussions relating to the visit of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in February 2017. 

The need for mapping of Sri Lanka’s mineral resources which has never been done was discussed during the Prime Minister’s visit. The Deputy Minister held discussions with officials of GeoScience Australia which is the repository of data on Australia’s natural resources.

He pointed out that an island wide survey of Sri Lanka’s mineral resources is a prerequisite for Sri Lanka to utilise the potential of the mineral industry and get investors interested in establishing linkages from Sri Lanka to global production networks. GeoScience Australia responded positively regarding bringing Australia’s experiences and expertise to Sri Lanka and undertaking a needs assessment visit. 

In Melbourne, the Deputy Minister visited the Australian Nuclear Science Technology Organisation (ANSTO) and the Australian Synchrotron which is a world-class research facility that uses accelerator technology to develop scientific applications in sectors from medicine and nanotechnology to manufacturing and mineral exploration. The Deputy Minister invited the scientific leadership at the Australian Synchrotron to focus on finding root causes of chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology (CKDu) which is affecting several tens of thousands, mainly farmers, in the North Central Province of Sri Lanka. 

"During discussions with Asialink at Melbourne University, the Deputy Minister reached an agreement to send teachers at Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte Maha Vidyalaya who are piloting Sri Lanka’s first ever “cloud smart classroom” on a tour to Australia to learn from Australian practitioners about applying technology in the classroom."  the statement said.

During the visit the Deputy Minister had two speaking engagements where he delivered a public seminar titled “Sri Lanka in Transition: Opportunities and Challenges” at the South Asia Research Centre of the Australian National University in Canberra and a Roundtable Discussion at Asialink, Melbourne University  with academics, INGOs, and business community.