SLCBCC holds Business Star Awards 2014

Monday, 1 September 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Chinese Ambassador stresses importance of building platform for cooperation

Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa was the chief guest at the fourth Star Awards ceremony organised by the Sri Lanka-China Business Cooperation Council (SLCBCC), held at the Galadari Hotel in Colombo last week. The annual event was amidst a large gathering of businessmen with close trade links to China. The Guest of Honour was the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China in Sri Lanka Wu Jianghao.

The SLCBCC, accredited as a member of the National Chamber of Commerce in Sri Lanka, was established in 1994 by the Sri Lanka-China Society. It is one of the oldest and most active bilateral business councils in Sri Lanka. Its mission is to promote bilateral trade and business with China. In his address, Ambassador Wu Jianghao noted that after four years of development, the Business Star Awards held by SLCBCC has received wide attention and has become one of the most influential award ceremonies in the Sri Lankan business circle. “This is not only a microcosm of the development of economic and trade relations between Sri Lanka and China, but also a platform to further promote bilateral economic and trade cooperation. I do appreciate the excellent work of the Council,” he said.

The Ambassador added that bilateral economic and trade cooperation between Sri Lanka and China in the future should make full use of all the favourable factors and opportunities, such as Sri Lanka-China Free Trade Agreements, infrastructure development and the concept of 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. “What is foremost is to increase investment in the manufacturing industry, and build up the platform for cooperation in this vital segment. Secondly, it is paramount to utilise the geographical advantage of Sri Lanka to make the country a shipping and logistics hub and create a platform for service cooperation,” he stressed. Thirdly, tourism resources should be excavated to develop the tourism platform by facilitating Chinese tourist travel to Sri Lanka. Based on these three platforms in manufacturing, service and tourism industries, the bilateral trade structure should be improved to further promote industry integration, he suggested. A total of 20 awards were given away and the Pinnacle award bestowed upon Singer Sri Lanka PLC.