Sri Lanka's Apex Organisation for Export Promotion
The Export Development Board (EDB), in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Consulate General in Shanghai, facilitated Sri Lanka’s participation in the second China International Import Expo (CIIE) held in Shanghai, China from 5-10 November.
Sri Lanka Export Development Board organized an Export Promotional Mission to Toronto in Canada from 20 to 23 October 2019 in collaboration with the Sri Lanka Consulate in Toronto. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka partnered under the Economic Diplomacy Program (EDP) which enabled to organize Sri Lanka Pavilion at GIC in successful manner.
The Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) organised a business seminar recently with the objective of increasing awareness among Sri Lankan exporters on the Central European market and to create business linkages with the supermarkets, retailers and buying agents in Poland.
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Brasília, under the Economic Diplomacy Program initiated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and with the patronage of the Department of Commerce, the Export Development Board, the Coconut Development Authority, and the Sri Lanka Tea Board, held a trade promotional program in the State of Minas Gerais from 15 to 17 October.
Sri Lanka yesterday launched the official website announcing the country’s participation in the six-month long Expo 2020 Dubai, anticipating a major boost to exports, tourism and investments while looking to enhance the country’s brand value and image globally.
Indira Malwatte, Chairperson & Chief Executive of EDB and the Commissioner General of Sri Lanka for Expo 2020 Dubai together with the private sector stakeholders; Secretary Generals of the National Chamber of Exporters and National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka, Shiham Marikkar and Bandula Dissanayake and the Co- Chair Planning Sub Committee of Expo 2020 Dubai, Fazal Mushin met Ahmed Ali Ibrahim Al Mualla, the ambassador for UAE in Sri Lanka this week at the embassy premises to further strengthen Sri Lanka’s commitment in participation at Expo 2020 Dubai and to review the progress made so far.
Mahela Jayawardena and Kumar Sangakkara - two of the most iconic cricketers produced by the country has come on board as Sri Lanka’s Brand Ambassadors for Expo 2020 Dubai organized by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) as a public private cooperation project .
The 23rd Presidential Export Award Ceremony (PEA) organized by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) was successfully held on 19th September 2019 under the patronage of His Excellency the President of Sri Lnaka at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH), Colombo with the participation of the large number of exporters. The award winners were presented a prestigious PEA Trophy and a Certificate & they have the privilege to use the “Award Logo” as a marketing tool for a 3 year period.
The 23rd Presidential Export Award Ceremony organized by the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) will be held on Thursday 19th September 2019 at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) under the patronage of His Excellency the President of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka’s participation at Expo 2020 Dubai is set in a spectacular manner to ensure the strengthening of the country’s trade, tourism, and investments. The Sri Lanka Export Development Board plays a critical role, together with private and state organisations, to landmark Sri Lanka’s presence at this global event.
The government has allocated Rs. 580 million to promote Sri Lanka’s exports, tourism and investment opportunities at Expo 2020 Dubai, which is expected to draw over 25 million visitors.
The country’s exports are heading in the right direction with apparel, coconut and coconut based products, recording an all time high in May, according to the data released by the Export Development Board (EDB) last week.
The Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) in association with the National Research Council (NRC) held an awareness session on the NRC’s Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Programme on 29th July, 2019, at the EDB Auditorium targeting the exporter community. The aim of the session was to educate exporters about the modalities of the PPP programme.
“This Act is truly visionary; I wish other countries had this in their export development framework!”, remarked a senior official of the Geneva-based International Trade Centre to me some months back. He was referring to the ‘Sri Lanka Export Development Act No. 40 of 1979’, which marks 40 years this month. He had found it to be an institutional arrangement that was far ahead of its time, and is still having relevance today – not just for Sri Lanka, but also for other developing countries. And he would know, having worked on export development strategies for over a dozen countries around the world.
To help Sri Lankan companies eyeing the daunting Indian market, the International Trade and Development Strategies Ministry yesterday launched a new report to assist breaking into India, with Minister Malik Samarawickrama undertaking a visit to India this week to help local businesses find success across the Palk Strait.
The Sri Lanka Export Development Board [EDB] which turned 40 years on 1st August is the premier state organization for the development and promotion of exports. The Board plays myriad roles in the export sector of the economy, as a Policy Advisor, Monitor, Promoter, Facilitator and Knowledge Provider in carrying out its responsibilities of implementing strategies for achieving national export targets.
Despite global and local challenges, Sri Lanka’s merchandised and service exports have risen by 11.4% to $ 8.5 billion in the first half of this year, prompting the Government to attribute it to a series of development efforts and assure further support. Releasing the latest yet provisional data, Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama said yesterday that export sector performance was commendable, though he admitted there is significant scope for higher value. “The 11.4% growth, despite the impact of the October 2018 undemocratic constitutional coup, and the Easter Sunday tragedy, as well as global challenges, is very satisfactory. For the first time, three months of first half of 2019 - January, March and June - have produced over $ 1 billion worth of merchandised exports. We had originally set an ambitious $ 20 billion target for 2019, but we may miss it and end up at around $ 18.5 billion, which will be still higher than the $ 16 billion achieved last year,” Samarawickrama said.
A delegation led by Hon. Nalin Bandara, Deputy Minister of Development Strategies & International Trade comprising officials from both the public and private sector visited United Arab Emirates (UAE) and met several important trade partners in the UAE. The delegation had very fruitful discussions with the Dubai Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Sharjah Chamber of Commerce & Industry as well as Al-Maya Group and the Lulu Supermarket International.
Sri Lanka is now officially an approved participant at the World Expo 2020 Dubai as the Government of Sri Lanka signed the Official Participation Contract with the "Dubai Expo 2020 Bureau” on 08th July 2019. The high level delegation to the UAE for the Contract signing Ceremony was led by Hon. Nalin Bandara, Deputy Minister of Development Strategies & International Trade. Ms. Indira Malwatte, Chairperson & Chief Executive, Sri Lanka Export Development Board as the Commissioner General for Sri Lanka of Expo 2020 Dubai, signed the Official Participation Contract on behalf of Sri Lanka with Mr. Najeeb Mohammed Al-Ali, Executive Director of Dubai Expo 2020 Bureau in the presence of Hon. Nalin Bandara, Deputy Minister of Development Strategy and International Trade.
The Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) has been conducting the Exporters’ Forum since its inception from late 70s. The EDB has identified the need of a common platform to discuss and resolve the issues faced by the exporter community in Sri Lanka in order to facilitate exporters to overcome constraints arising from policy and operational issues created by various institutes that regulate, operate, and facilitate cross border trade. The EDB as the nation’s prime institute to facilitate export development created this mechanism to enable exporters to submit their issues to the highest levels of state institutions that cannot be reached easily by a trader. The unique feature of the Exporters’ Forum is the participation of the private sector and the public sector to resolve issues, with the political leadership represented by the relevant minister together with direct ministry-level interventions providing solutions to address those issues.
