An online meeting took place between the management of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry and representatives of the Embassy of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation, headed by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, His Excellency, Mr. Migahalande Durage Lamavansag.
The meeting was attended by Mr. Vladimir Platonov, the President of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Mr. Suren Vardanyan, the Vice President of the Chamber, responsible for foreign economic activity.
Opening the meeting, Mr. Platonov made a point that Russia and Sri Lanka have longstanding close ties. He described the work of the Moscow’s Chamber, indicating that "There are more than seven hundred thousand entrepreneurs in city of Moscow. Although membership in the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Russia is not mandatory, the most dynamic, active and conscientious businessmen join our ranks - the Chamber has almost 4 thousand members".
The Head of the MCCI told the representatives of the Embassy of Sri Lanka about the Chamber's main projects: the electronic trading platform "Business Market", a jurisdictional assistant for entrepreneurs "Documents are in Order" and the platform "International Club of Employers", which unites graduates of Russian universities from 157 countries.
Mr. Lamavansag, stated that "Unfortunately, I have never been to the Soviet Union or visited Russia before, but I can say that I have read extensively and am aware how developing entrepreneurship has aided your country to reach the level on which it finds itself today". Mr. Ambassador said “For a long time, there have existed friendly relations between Russia and Sri Lanka, based on mutual understanding".
The trade turnover between Russia and Sri Lanka amounts to 370 million dollars; it is planned to bring this figure to 700 million dollars in the nearest future. "In our country a close attention is paid to the development of entrepreneurship as well", - said Mr. Ambassador.
Ms. Chaturika Perera, the Second Secretary for Trade and Economic Relations of the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Russia, stated that the average income per capita in her country is 3852 USD, while the population has reached 22 million. Also, "The focus of Sri Lanka's economy is currently shifting from the agricultural sector to production and development of the services’ sector.”
During the meeting, a presentation was made of the main directions of the current export and import of goods between Russia and Sri Lanka, as well as industries, in which there are good prospects for mutual cooperation. Russia is being supplied with Ceylon tea, clothing, textile fibres, cloth, car tires, and accessories made of vulcanised rubber. Fresh and dried fruits and vegetables, coconut products, spices, including Lankan cinnamon, seafood, gems and jewellery were named among the promising products for export to the Russian market. In addition, in terms of investment potential, Sri Lanka introduced the project Port City Colombo, as well as industries, such as food processing, pharmacology, IT and technology expansion, as well as tourism and recreation. As for the latter, according to Ms. Maria Selikhova, the Assistant of the Department for Trade and Economic Relations of the Embassy of Sri Lanka in the Russian Federation, who made the presentation, in recent years, there has been a large increase in the tourist flow from Russia. Last year it increased by 34% and reached 86.5 thousand travellers. The Embassy is planning to hold a number of online events that would allow Russian entrepreneurs to learn about the opportunities offered by Sri Lanka. "We would like to enlist the support of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry in the implementation of these events and the involvement of Moscow businessmen," - Mr. Ambassador concluded.
Meanwhile, Russia exports wheat, ferrous metals, coal, paper and cardboard. Mr. Vardanyan noted that recently the MCCI has held about 30 events, which described trade and investment potentials of a number of countries. "We will welcome a conference to familiarise Russian entrepreneurs with business opportunities in Sri Lanka," said the Vice President of the Moscow Chamber.
Among the economic areas that could be of interest to Russian entrepreneurs for the development of joint business, Mr. Vardanyan named high-tech solutions for the agro-industrial complex, including storage of agricultural products in difficult conditions, as well as medicine, including rehabilitation. "Even riding your gentle elephants evokes the most positive emotions," the Vice President of the Chamber said, sharing his personal experience during his visit to Sri Lanka.
Mr. Vladimir Platonov, summing up the meeting, stressed that the MCCI is ready to cooperate with the Embassy of Sri Lanka on a wide range of subjects. "We hope for your support in establishing contacts with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Sri Lanka. With support from the Embassy, the results are always much more effective”, said the President of the MCCI. In addition, he suggested sending all the materials presented at the meeting to the regional Chambers of Commerce and Industry and publishing them on the website of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry.