News

RW to participate in India-hosted Voice of Global South Summit

Published

2 years ago

January 7, 2023

editor

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe will be among 20 world leaders who will participate in the “Voice of the Global South Summit” (VGSS) next week hosted by India virtually.

The summit will take place on January 12 and January 13 and will be chaired by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Other than leaders from the neighbourhood, leaders from five countries from Africa (Angola, Ghana, Nigeria, Mozambique, Senegal), three countries from the ASEAN grouping (Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam) will be present, along with leaders of Uzbekistan, Mongolia, UAE, Papua New Guinea.

Remember, Senegal’s Macky Sall is the head of the African Union while Thailand is the chair of BIMSTEC grouping. The summit will have 10 sessions, with the opening and closing leaders’ session chaired by PM Modi and the remaining eight at the ministerial level.

The ministerial sessions will be at Finance, Environment, Foreign, Energy, Health, Education, and Trade levels. The theme of the Inaugural Leaders’ session is “Voice of Global South – for Human-Centric Development” and that of the Concluding Leaders’ session is “Unity of Voice-Unity of Purpose”.

Four sessions would be held on 12th January, and six sessions on 13th January. All in all, New Delhi has extended invites to 120 countries.

Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra in a presser on Friday said that the summit will “bring together countries of the global south and share perspectives and priorities” amid Covid pandemic fallout, global price rise when it comes to food, fuel, fertilisers due to Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The summit feeds into the G20 Summit which India will be hosting later this year in September. The foreign secretary highlighted, “The valuable inputs generated from the partner countries receive due cognizance globally and India’s ongoing Presidency of the G20 provides us with a special and strong opportunity to channelise these inputs into the deliberation and discourse of G20.”

India took over the Presidency of the grouping on December 1, 2022, and will host the summit for the first time since the emergence of the grouping after the 2008 financial crisis.

(dailymirror)

News

Members Appointed to the Port City Economic Commission

Published

20 hours ago

December 14, 2024

editor

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake has appointed members to the Colombo Port City Economic Commission.

The appointment letters were presented today (13) by the Secretary to the President, Dr. Nandika Sanath Kumanayake at the President’s Office.

Harsha Amarasekara PC has been named Chairman of the Commission.

Damian Amal Cabraal, Mohan Ray Abeywardena, Sanjay Kulatunga, and Dr. Harsha Subasinghe have also been appointed as members of the Commission.

News

Parliament to meet on Tuesday, Wednesday

Published

20 hours ago

December 14, 2024

editor

Parliament will meet only on Tuesday and Wednesday (17 and 18), said Secretary General of Parliament Kushani Rohanadeera. The Parliamentary business with regard to that week was decided at the Committee on Parliamentary Business held on December 6 under the chairmanship of the Speaker.

Parliament will meet at 9.30 a.m. on Tuesday (17) and the time from 9.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m. has been allotted for Questions for Oral Answers.

Thereafter, from 10.30 a.m. to 2.00 p.m., the supplementary estimate for providing an allowance for schoolchildren to obtain stationery and the supplementary estimate for allocating provisions for road projects for 2024 will be taken up for debate and it was decided to continue the debate on Wednesday (18).

The Adjournment Motion (Opposition) on the “Restructuring of International Sovereign Bonds” is scheduled to be debated from 2.00 p.m. to 5.30 p.m.

Parliament will meet at 9.30 a.m. on Wednesday (18) and the time from 9.30 a.m. to 10.30 a.m. has been set aside for Questions for Oral Answers.

Thereafter, from 10.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m., along with the debate on the two supplementary estimates adjourned the previous day, the debate on Regulations under the Imports and Exports (Control) Act, Order under the Foreign Exchange Act, Regulations under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, Regulation under the Casino Business (Regulation) Act, Order under the Ports and Airports Development Levy Act, Regulations under the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Act will be held. All of these subjects are scheduled to be presented to Parliament in the afternoon and passed.

Thereafter, time has been allotted for Questions at the Adjournment Time (two questions) from 5.00 p.m. to 5.30 p.m.

News

US officials’ visit enhanced diplomatic ties between two countries

Published

20 hours ago

December 14, 2024

editor

U.S. Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs at the Department of State Ambassador Donald Lu, along with Deputy Assistant Secretary for Asia and the Pacific at the U.S. Department of the Treasury Robert Kaproth and Deputy Assistant Administrator of the Bureau for Asia at the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Anjali Kaur recently concluded a visit to Sri Lanka.

They engaged in discussions with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism Minister Vijitha Herath.

The visit underscored the deepening diplomatic relations between Sri Lanka and the United States, highlighting a shared commitment to regional peace, economic cooperation, and democratic development.

The delegation met President Dissanayake and discussed Sri Lanka’s economic recovery, ongoing anti-corruption initiatives, and efforts to strengthen governance and democratic institutions. The President also outlined his vision for uplifting rural living standards and enhancing the quality of the public sector.

The delegation also held a meeting with Prime Minister Dr. Amarasuriya, where they engaged in discussions on economic recovery and education reforms.

The delegation conducted discussions with Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment, and Tourism Minister on issues related to regional security, human rights, and multilateral cooperation.

The Minister briefed the delegation of the third review under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Extended Fund Facility (EFF) programme and assured Sri Lanka’s commitment to enhancing bilateral relations with all countries while maintaining a peaceful Indian Ocean region.

He also commended the U.S. for its continued support extended to Sri Lanka. Deputy Assistant Administrator Kaur expressed the U.S.’s keen interest in tailoring future USAID projects to suit the priorities of the Sri Lankan Government.

This visit serves as a testament to the deepening relationship between Sri Lanka and the United States, with both countries committed to fostering stronger ties in the years ahead across various sectors of mutual interest.

(DailyNews)

(This story, originally published by DailyNews has not been edited by SLM staff)