Sri Lanka-Greater Mekong Business Council meets Ambassador of Thailand
Daily FT: The President and Executive Committee of the Sri Lanka-Greater Mekong Business Council (SLGMBC) of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce recently held a meeting with Ambassador of Thailand Paitoon Mahapannaporn and Counsellor of Thailand to Sri Lanka Prangtip Kongridhisuksakorn.
The discussion focused on enhancing economic cooperation and exploring new investment opportunities between Thailand and Sri Lanka under the activation of the FTA signed.
During the meeting, both parties identified several key areas for collaboration including boosting tourism, agriculture, fisheries and healthcare sectors, as well as increasing bilateral trade and investment.
Ambassador Paitoon highlighted “Thailand as a gateway to the ASEAN and Mekong sub-region, and Sri Lanka as a gateway to South Asia” for potential cooperation in all sectors. One of the highlights was the potential to attract investment from Thailand in Sri Lanka’s agricultural sector, including production, processing, and distribution. The SLGMBC remains committed to fostering these discussions and implementing the strategies discussed, paving the way for strengthened economic ties and mutual growth between the two nations.
OSL take:
Sri Lanks is currently engaged in a programme to further strengthen the existing trade ties with other countries while also looking at forming new trade pacts with more countries. It is in such a backdrop that the Sri Lanka-Greater Mekong Business Council is looking at expanding ties between Sri Lanka and Thailand. Sri Lanka signed a free trade agreement (FTA) with Thailand earlier this year resulting in the opening up of new business/investment opportunities between the two countries. Given the growing ties between the two countries, Thai businesses/investors could explore the expanding business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka and vice versa. Thai businesses could also look at forming partnerships or joint ventures with local businesses with the aim of further expansion locally and internationally. Thai business could also look at setting up base in Sri Lanka to engage with other countries in the region using the preferential treatment enjoyed by Sri Lanka with other countries.