SLSBC concludes successful trade and investment promotion mission to Singapore

The Sri Lanka-Singapore Business Council (SLSBC) of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce successfully concluded a business mission to Singapore from 29 July to 1 August.

The mission was organised to coincide with the SBF Seminar on Doing Business in Sri Lanka followed by one-to-one business meetings which was organised by the Singapore Business Federation (SBF); the apex business chamber in Singapore with over 18,000 members closely supported by International Enterprise (IE) Singapore; the Government Agency driving Singapore’s external economy and promoting the overseas growth of Singapore-based enterprises and international trade, in association with the Sri Lankan High Commission in Singapore.

The 19-member delegation led by the SLSBC President Shamil Mendis, Chairman/Managing Director of Spear Global Holdings Ltd. resulted in an extremely productive visit to Singapore. The delegation  comprised Janaka Gunasekera, Deputy Managing Director, A. Baur & Co. Ltd., Prajeeth Balasubramaniam, Managing Partner, Blue Ocean Ventures Ltd., Sriyal Dissanayake, Managing Director, Eastern Maritime (Colombo) Ltd., Amal Rodrigo, Director, Hayleys Free Zone Ltd., Pradeep Moraes, Director, Indocean Developers Ltd., Shiluka Goonewardene, Principal – Deal Advisory, KPMG, Andre Fernando, Chairman/Managing Director, MAC Projects Ltd., Fayek Wafa, Director/CEO, MAC Projects Ltd., Rohitha  Mendis, Managing Director, Prudential Shipping Lines Ltd., and Helanka Vacations Ltd., Sanath Fernando CEO, Ridgecrest Group Ltd., Sam Ahilan, Chairman, SP Matpol Ltd./Fiberdust LLC, Jeevan Gnanam, Director, St. Anthony’s Knowledge Services Ltd., Satheeka Kavisekera, Spear Global Holdings Ltd., A. Samson C.  De Silva, Chairman/Managing Director, S.S. Impex Ltd., Vish Govindasamy, Group Managing Director, Sunshine Holdings PLC., Venga Yogarajan, CEO/Director, Sunshine Travels, U.C. Bandaranayake, Director, Valdhue & Walker Ltd. The mission was coordinated by Michelle Fernando, Management Executive of The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce.

The objective of the SBF Seminar was to educate Singaporean companies on the potential opportunities in doing business with Sri Lanka.  The event was attended by over a 100 participants from over 70 well established Singapore companies including Keppel Land, the property arm of the Keppel Group, one of Singapore’s largest multinational groups with key businesses in offshore and marine infrastructure as well as property, Bank of Singapore the  wholly owned private banking subsidiary of OCBC Bank, one of Asia’s leading financial services institutions, Khong Guan Flour Milling Ltd., a leading trader of wheat flour and other edible products, WEC Engineers & Constructors Ltd., a leading civil and infrastructure construction company, Woh Hup Food Industries Ltd., a renowned manufacturer of food products such as noodles and sauces, Thakral One, the well-known consulting, IT solutions and support services arm of the leading Singapore company – Thakral Group, Oakwood Asia Pacific, a world leader in providing furnished and serviced corporate apartments and residences, and Lladro Singapore Ltd., a leading Spanish company specialising in handmade porcelain products, to name a few.

The opening remarks were made by Alan Tan, Director (ASEAN and South Asia), Global Business Division, Singapore Business Federation while Arthur Teng, Manager, South Asia Group of International Enterprise, Singapore presented a business overview of Sri Lanka.

Upul Jayasuriya, Chairman, of the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka in his speech mentioned the significant and attractive opportunities available for investment in Sri Lanka while Dilip Samarasinghe, Director (Media and Publicity) of the Board of Investment made a detailed presentation.

Addressing the gathering Shamil Mendis, President of the SLSBC stated that the participation of Sri Lankan delegates in a series of successful seminars and business sessions organized by the Singapore Business Federation and IE Singapore in the past has resulted in productive business contacts and partnerships between Singaporean and Sri Lankan companies.

Considering Sri Lanka’s rapidly developing status as a regional hub for business Mendis invited potential Singaporean investors to visit Sri Lanka in order to explore the many opportunities available for doing business in the country.

The seminar concluded with scheduled one on one business meetings between the representatives of the Singapore companies and the Sri Lankan delegates as well as with the opportunity for the Singaporeans to interact with the officials of the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka and clarify matters relating to potential investments.

The delegation also participated in a series of meetings at the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SICCI), the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCCI) and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce & Industry (JCCI) which provided them an opportunity to network with the senior officials and members of the three Chambers.

The Acting Sri Lanka High Commissioner in Singapore Wishwanath Aponsu supported by Rekha Mallikarachchi, Second Secretary (Commercial) hosted the members of the delegation for a networking session with Singaporean companies interested in exploring business opportunities and the members of the Singapore Sri Lanka Business Association during the mission.