Embassy in Japan to hold ‘Sri Lanka Festival’ in Tokyo in Sept.

The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Tokyo, Japan is organising the Ninth Sri Lanka Festival on 8 and 9 September in Tokyo.

Ambassador Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda, at a said press conference highlighted the congenial and cordial bilateral relations between Japan and Sri Lanka, the importance of this year since it marks the 60th Anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between the two countries, the assistance and cooperation extended by the Government of Japan over the last six decades, the cultural and religious affinity of the two countries, the promotion of tourism from Japan to Sri Lanka and the manner in which the two countries assisted each other at critical and crucial times of its history, among others. The press conference included a depiction and presentation of places of interests in Sri Lanka, cultural performances and commercial and economic opportunities in the country. This is the ninth consecutive year that the Embassy would be hosting the high profile Sri Lanka Festival. This year, the theme of the Festival is ‘Miracle Island: Sri Lanka – Wonder of Asia’. The primary objectives of the Sri Lanka Festival are to promote and project Sri Lanka, in all culture, trade, commercial and particularly in tourism aspects, and to enhance and augment the image of the country, among others.

The Sri Lanka Festival attracts well over 120,000 visitors including that of Japanese, Sri Lankans and other nationalities, and has been a great success over the past eight years.  Specifically, the Sri Lanka Festival would portray and showcase the Sri Lankan cultural activities, products and services of Sri Lanka, places and destinations of interest for tourists in Sri Lanka and newly emerged economic and commercial opportunities and vistas as well as the future potential and promise of the country, among others.  The said Sri Lanka Festival is organised by the Embassy along with the cooperation and assistance of Sri Lankan and Japanese entrepreneurs, corporates and well-wishers.  

It is envisaged that nearly 100 stalls and booths serving authentic Sri Lankan food, and displaying of precious gems and costume jewellery, herbal and ayurvedic products, cosmetics, brass and silver ornaments and wood carvings, ceramics, diverse varieties of Sri Lankan tea from different regions of the country, a variety of pure Sri Lankan spices, and Sri Lankan garments including that of hand woven textiles and batik, as well as a Grand Raffle Draw which would include four return air tickets to Sri Lanka, among others.  The unique feature of the Sri Lanka festival is that almost all these products and food items are Sri Lankan, by nature.  This in turn, promotes, markets and projects the products and services, including that of tourism, of Sri Lankan companies including that of the Small and Medium Enterprises [SMEs].

The two-day Sri Lanka Festival would be filled with a number of activities and cultural shows including that of ‘Channa – Upuli’ dance performance and Sri Lankan songs sung by Bathiya and Santhush among others.

It is strongly presumed that the Sri Lanka Festival will attract a larger number of visitors, thus disseminating and projecting the commercial, economic, trade, service and touristic potential of the country to the Japanese and non-Japanese visitors. It is also of the conviction that the said Sri Lanka Festival would elevate the profile and image of the country, particularly, as a rapidly burgeoning economic and commercial nerve centre, in the foreseeable future.