Australian assistance sought for survey of mineral resources

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Dr. Harsha de Silva on a visit to Australia last week on an invitation extended by the Australian Government under their Special Visitor Program sought to utilise the expertise of Australia  to expand  investment opportunities in the mineral sector of Sri Lanka, government news portal reported.

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 Geo-Science 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. Geo-Science Australia responded positively regarding bringing Australia’s experiences and expertise to Sri Lanka and undertaking a needs assessment visit, a statement said.