Connect with us

News

New US Embassy in Colombo opened (Pic)

Published

on

The newly revamped United States Embassy in Sri Lanka was officially declared open in Colombo yesterday.

President Ranil Wickremesinghe, US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung, and the US Department of State’s Under Secretary for Management John Bass officially opened the new Embassy in a festive event.

Below is the full statement issued by the American Embassy in Sri Lanka.

Colombo, October 28, 2022: In a celebration of more than 70 years of U.S.-Sri Lankan friendship, partnership, and bilateral ties, the Honorable President Ranil Wickremesinghe, U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung, and the U.S. Department of State’s Under Secretary for Management John Bass officially opened the new U.S. Embassy on Galle Road today in a festive event that included officials and private citizens from both countries.

“It was a great honor to celebrate our new Embassy in the presence of the President of Sri Lanka, honored guests, and colleagues,” said U.S. Ambassador Chung. “We have had an embassy in Colombo since Sri Lanka’s independence in 1948, and the new campus symbolizes our enduring partnership with Sri Lanka. Americans and Sri Lankans worked together to build this state-of-the-art facility that epitomizes respect for the environment and appreciation of Sri Lankan architectural, cultural, and artistic themes. We are pleased to open our new doors to our Sri Lankan friends.”

Under Secretary Bass stated: “The new embassy highlights the important diplomatic relationship between the United States and Sri Lanka and provides the first impression of the United States for many Sri Lankans. It also demonstrates sustainable design, construction, and operations that represent the best of U.S. architecture, engineering, and building standards.”

The new Embassy is situated on the existing, expanded embassy site along the seafront in central Colombo and provides a secure, modern, sustainable, and resilient platform for U.S. diplomacy in Sri Lanka. The architecture and landscape of the new Embassy were designed to embrace Sri Lanka’s ecology, history, and culture and are heavily informed by Colombo’s tropical climate. Domestically sourced natural stone and wood reference the region’s rich selection of materials in a neutral palette that draws attention to the lushness of the landscape. The Embassy’s interior incorporates textures and patterns inspired by local culture, art, and the surrounding gardens.

A model of environmental stewardship, the new embassy was designed to reduce energy costs and greenhouse-gas emissions while increasing security and augmenting renewable energy usage. To mitigate the effects of strong sun and heavy rainfall, the new embassy integrates regionally available weather-resistant materials, an advanced stormwater management system, and, soon, photovoltaic arrays that will offset roughly eleven percent of the building’s annual energy use. The project is registered with Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) — a global green building certification program that recognizes best-in-class building strategies and practices — and is on track to achieve Silver certification.

The new Embassy also contains a permanent art collection, curated by the Office of Art in Embassies, that includes art in a variety of media, including painting, photography, textiles, and sculpture by both U.S. and Sri Lankan artists. Highlights include site-specific commissions of Birds for Sri Lanka and a wall sculpture representing the atolls and coral life in the oceans. These works reflect an understanding of the diversity and richness of U.S. and Sri Lankan ecology and cultural heritage.

The Bureau of Overseas Building Operations spearheaded the new embassy’s construction. Integrus Architecture of Seattle was the architect for the project, and Caddell Construction Company, LLC of Montgomery, Alabama, constructed the complex, injecting roughly $90 million into the local economy.

-US Embassy Colombo

Continue Reading

News

First capacity-building program under NCGG – SLIDA MoU concludes successfully

Published

on

By

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the National Centre for Good Governance of India (NCGG) and Sri Lanka Institute of Development Administration (SLIDA) was signed during the State Visit of President of Sri Lanka, H.E. Anura Kumara Disanayaka to India in December 2024 for training and capacity building of 1500 Sri Lankan civil service officers over a period of five years.

The first program under the MoU was successfully held at NCGG from 21 April to 02 May 2025, and was attended by 41 officers. Based on the request of the Government of Sri Lanka, the theme of the program was ‘digitization in governance’. The program featured a series of sessions focused on key areas such as digital service delivery, digital public infrastructure, financial inclusion through digital payments, and innovations in public grievance redressal systems. Senior officials and domain experts delivered presentations on flagship Indian initiatives in the digital domain, including Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission, e-Office, GeM, Aadhaar, PM Gati Shakti, among others.

At an interaction session with participants in the inaugural program organized on 08 May 2025 at SLIDA, the High Commissioner of India to Sri Lanka, H.E. Santosh Jha underscored that capacity building is an important pillar of the development cooperation between the two countries, with Sri Lanka being among the largest recipients of scholarships and capacity building initiatives offered by India. He highlighted that, demonstrating India’s continued commitment to enhancing capacity-building opportunities for Sri Lankans, Prime Minister of India had announced additional training avenues to 700 Sri Lankan citizens annually during his recent State visit. In that context, the High Commissioner said that the participants in the first NCGG-SLIDA programme also represented the first set of Sri Lankan nationals to receive training as part of the significantly enhanced capacity-building endeavour of India that will now benefit 1000 Sri Lankans annually.

The interaction session was also attended by Secretary, Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government, Mr S. Aloka Bandara; Director General of SLIDA, Mr A.V. Janadara; senior officials and faculty members of SLIDA; among others.

In view of the highly positive feedback from the participants in the inaugural NCGG-SLIDA program, based on request from SLIDA, a second program on the same theme under the MoU is now being planned for another batch of around 40 officers for early June 2025.

Continue Reading

News

Bell 212 helicopter crash : Death toll rises to 06 (Update)

Published

on

By

Another Special Forces (SF) soldier who was onboard the SLAF Bell 212 helicopter that crashed into the Maduru Oya Reservoir this morning (May 09) has succumbed to his injuries while receiving treatment at the hospital.

This brings the death toll from the fatal accident to six.

Six other armed forces personnel, who sustained injuries in the incident, are currently receiving treatment at the hospital.


(Previous news 2025 May 09 – 11.31.a.m.)

5 dead in Bell 212 crash

Five military personnel have been confirmed dead in the crash of a Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) Bell 212 helicopter into the Maduru Oya Reservoir earlier this morning (May 09.
According to the SLAF Spokesperson Group Captain Eranda Geeganage, the deceased include three members of the Sri Lanka Army’s Special Forces and two Air Force personnel.

The aircraft was carrying a total of 12 individuals, including six Army Special Forces members, two Air Force Regiment Special Forces personnel, two other Air Force members, and two pilots.

(Video : Accident 1st)

මාදුරුඔය පීරා බෙල් 212 සොයන මෙහෙයුම… #Accident1st #bell212 #Helicopter #crashe #MaduruOya

Posted by Accident 1st on Thursday, May 8, 2025

(Previous news 2025 May 09 – 9.57.a.m.)

SLAF helicopter crashes into Maduru Oya during training session

A Bell 212 helicopter belonging to the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF) has reportedly crashed today (May 09) into the Maduru Oya Reservoir.

The incident occurred during a training exercise held as part of the Sri Lanka Army Special Forces passing-out ceremony in Maduru Oya.

The aircraft was carrying ten Special Forces soldiers and two pilots at the time of the incident.

Continue Reading

News

LG Polls: EC sets deadline to submit campaign finance reports

Published

on

By

The Election Commission has instructed all candidates who contested the 2925 Local Government (LG) Elections to submit their campaign income and expenditure reports on or before May 28.

A statement by the Commission emphasized that candidates are required to prepare and submit their financial disclosures in line with the provisions of the Election Expenditure Regulation Act No. 03 of 2023. These reports must be handed over to the Returning Officers of the respective electoral districts.

Election Commissioner General Saman Sri Ratnayake stated that this process is part of the Commission’s efforts to ensure transparency and accountability in the electoral process.

Continue Reading

Trending

Copyright © 2024 Sri Lanka Mirror. All Rights Reserved