‘Pakistan Single Country Exhibition’ in Lanka to boost business

“There are vast opportunities for bilateral trade between Pakistan and Sri Lanka and the quantum of trade will be taken to $1 billion annually”, he said.

He said Pakistan desires good economic relations with Sri Lanka.

Discussions were also held to conduct an exhibition in Pakistan in the near future to showcase Sri Lankan products and the two leaders agreed to further expand the cooperation between the two countries on the Gem and Jewellery industry.

He was talking to journalists before leaving for home after concluding his three-day official visit to Sri Lanka.

Explaining the rationale behind the event, a release issued by the CID stated that Sri Lanka experienced “exceptional economic growth” over the last decade which “builds upon strong historic growth in [terms of] both per capita income and broader measures” of living standards for most Sri Lankans even during the 26-year civil war.

Acceding to a request made by Prime Minister Sharif, President Sirisena said that in the future, he will make the necessary arrangements to gift Elephant to Pakistan.

He said that Pakistan being home to the Buddhist civilisation and heritage offered great potential for promoting religious tourism, particularly to Sri Lanka.

Commerce Minister Khurram Dastagir Khan said that the government of Pakistan would facilitate the Sri Lankan businessmen who wanted to invest in Pakistan’s various sectors. Mr Sharif said both sides expressed their satisfaction at the existing bilateral cooperation in the field of defence.

The Sri Lankan president thanked Pakistan on Tuesday for helping the island nation root out terrorism from its soil, saying the government and its people were thankful to Pakistan for its assistance.

The MoU on sharing statistical and census data was signed between the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics and the Department of Census and Statistics of Sri Lanka.

Later, Prime Ministers Sharif and Wickremesinghe, along with other dignitaries, attended a dinner reception hosted by the Pakistan High Commission.

PM Sharif reviewed a guard of honour presented by a contingent of the Sri Lankan forces.