Sri Lankan envoy discusses enhancing investment collaboration with BOI of Thailand
Daily FT: Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Thailand Wijayanthi Edirisinghe had a meeting with Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) Secretary General Narit Therdsteerasukdi to discuss strengthening bilateral investment ties between Sri Lanka and Thailand.
During the meeting, Ambassador Edirisinghe acknowledged Thailand’s dynamic investment ecosystem and commended the BOI’s pivotal role in promoting inward and outward investments. She emphasised the longstanding bilateral relationship between the two countries, which is deeply rooted in shared cultural and historical ties.
The Ambassador elaborated on what makes Sri Lanka an attractive investment destination in South Asia, referring to the leveraging of its strategic location, skilled workforce and investor-friendly policies. She highlighted key sectors for collaboration including logistics and infrastructure, tourism, offshore renewable energy, agriculture and food processing and gems and jewellery.
Further, the Ambassador extended an invitation for a high-level Thai business delegation to visit Sri Lanka this year to explore emerging investment opportunities and foster deeper economic collaboration.
BOI Secretary General Narit Therdsteerasukdi reaffirmed Thailand’s commitment to strengthening investment ties with Sri Lanka. He highlighted the BOI’s dual role in facilitating both inward and outward investments and assured Sri Lanka of BOI’s support in connecting with leading Thai investors.
The meeting underscored the potential for increased economic cooperation between the two countries, aiming to capitalise on Sri Lanka’s unique advantages as a regional investment hub.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka is currently on the path to further strengthen and expand the country’s existing grade ties with foreign countries while also looking at including more countries into the list of countries Sri Lanka enjoys trade ties with. It is in such a backdrop that Sri Lanka entered into a free trade agreement (FTA) with Thailand last year, thereby opening new business/investment opportunities for Sri Lanka as well as Thai businesses. Sri Lanka’s geographical positioning in the Indian Ocean, the strong trade ties and target of becoming a hub in the South Asian region have all helped the expansion of business/investment opportunities in key economic sectors in Sri Lanka. These business/investment opportunities are lucrative in nature given the growth and profits recorded by local businesses as well as the interest shown by foreign businesses/investors to explore opportunities in Sri Lanka. Thai businesses/investors could therefore confidently explore the expanding business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka and vice versa while also looking at joint ventures between Sri Lankan and Thai businesses to expand operations in Sri Lanka and outside using the strong trade and bilateral ties enjoyed by Sri Lanka with countries in the region as well as other countries.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20250115/Z_6 |