Deputy Chairman of CWEIC Lord Swire visits Port City Colombo
The Morning: Port City Colombo, Sri Lanka’s first multi-service Special Economic Zone, recently hosted Lord Swire, Deputy Chairman of the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council (CWEIC) to an exclusive session on the project’s attractive investment opportunities and economic potential
within the South Asian regional sphere.
He was accompanied by CWEIC officials including Niro Cooke, Country Chair – Sri Lanka and Group Director, The Capital Maharaja Organisation, Pamela O’Leary, Board Member, and Deshan Gonawela, Country Director. The delegation was welcomed by Revan Wickramasuriya, Director General, the Colombo Port City Economic Commission, and Thulci Aluwihare, Deputy Managing Director, CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd.
The visit encompassed a detailed presentation at the Port City Colombo Sales Gallery, where the delegation was briefed on the project progress and future projections as a competitive investment hotspot in the South Asia region.
Port City Colombo’s key appeal to top investor markets including the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific, progressive regulatory environment that promotes the ease of doing business, and diverse options for investors, were the focal point of the presentation.
The CWEIC delegation was also provided an experiential tour of the Mall at Port City Colombo, South Asia’s pioneering downtown duty-free retail offering, which is already contributing towards Colombo’s evolution as a hub for tourism and business.
“Sri Lanka needs to show that it is open for Foreign Direct Investment,” said Lord Swire. “There are diverse opportunities, not just in the tea and tourism industry, but also within the scope of Port
City Colombo’s Special Economic Zone, which is a truly exciting and ambitious initiative. The Commonwealth showcases some of the most diverse and fastest growing economies in the world, with prospective investors who will be interested in exploring the intriguing opportunities that Port City Colombo and Sri Lanka as a whole are bound to offer.”
Niro Cooke, Country Chair – Sri Lanka, CWEIC, and Group Director, The Capital Maharaja Organisation, further elaborated: ‘Sri Lanka has long been a sought-after tourism destination. However, we believe that Sri Lanka has the opportunity to evolve into a competitive diversified service-based economy, which could reinvent our nation into a truly formidable regional business hub. With FDI contributors such as Port City Colombo, a strengthened economic outlook, and strategic locality, Sri Lanka now has the right ingredients to become a progressive investment destination.”
As a CWEIC Strategic Partner, Port City Colombo has been actively involved in fostering investor relations across the Commonwealth.
Port City Colombo recently participated in the Commonwealth Business Forum 2024 held in Apia, Samoa, where the project’s contribution towards sustainable economic growth and regional skilled mobility within South Asia was accentuated.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka’s Port City project in Colombo is expected to take the country to the next level of development as it endeavors to become a regional hub. Given Sri Lanka’s geographical positioning in the Indian Ocean, the strong trade ties enjoyed by the country with many foreign countries and the prominence given to the country by foreign countries like China, who have placed Sri Lanka prominently in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), indicate the increasing value and business potential of the island nation. Given all these developments and the interest shown by many foreign businesses/investors to explore business/investment opportunities in the Colombo Port City project the increasing business potential presents many lucrative opportunities. Foreign businesses/investors could look at setting up bases in Sri Lanka to engage with other countries in the region using the preferential treatment enjoyed by the country with many foreign countries including countries in the region.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20250305/Z_4 |