CAIRO – Egyptian Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade Hassan El-Khatib emphasised the deep and strong historical ties between Egypt and Sri Lanka, highlighting the importance of working to enhance mutual investments and bilateral trade between the two countries.
This came during a meeting between the minister and Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Ali Sabry as they discussed ways to develop investment co-operation and achieve commercial integration between the two countries.
The meeting was attended by CEO of the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) Hossam Heiba, Minister Plenipotentiary for Trade Yahya El-Wathiq Billah, Head of the Commercial Representation, and several senior officials from the ministry.
On the Sri Lankan side, the meeting was attended by Director-General of Middle East and Africa Affairs at the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs Lakshitha Ratnayake and Acting Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Egypt Thulan Bandara.
El-Khatib noted that the meeting discussed priority investment sectors, including the textile and ready-made garment industry, tourism, infrastructure, and small and micro enterprises.
He emphasized the existence of many success stories of Sri Lankan companies that have transferred their investments to Egypt in sectors such as textiles and ready-made garments and project financing, such as companies like Hela Clothing, NATURUB, LOLC, Hirdaramani, and Teejay.
For his part, the Sri Lankan foreign minister emphasised Egypt’s distinguished position as an investment and trade partner for Sri Lanka, praising the Egyptian government’s efforts to create an attractive investment climate and strengthen trade partnerships.
Sabry pointed out that there are many investment opportunities in Sri Lanka, particularly in new and renewable energy and infrastructure projects that serve the country’s tourism purposes.
During the meeting, both sides agreed to organize a trade and investment mission to visit Sri Lanka at the end of this year to explore opportunities for joint cooperation between private sector representatives from both countries.
They also stressed the importance of activating the Joint Business Council and beginning technical consultations on a preferential trade agreement, which would encourage trade exchange between the two sides.
They also emphasised the importance of holding the next session of the Joint Ministerial Committee for Economic and Technical Co-operation.
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