The Foreign Affairs Minister of Japan, Hayashi Yoshimasa, is set to arrive in Sri Lanka tonight (July 28) for a two-day official visit, according to the President’s Media Division (PMD).

During his stay, Minister Hayashi will engage in bilateral discussions with his Sri Lankan counterpart Ali Sabry at the Foreign Ministry in Colombo. Additionally, he will pay courtesy calls on President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena.

Accompanying Minister Hayashi will be a delegation consisting of key officials from the Japanese Foreign Ministry, including Murakami Manabu (Senior Foreign Policy Coordinator), Arima Yutaka (Director General of Southeast and Southwest Asian Affairs), Endo Kazuya (Director General International Cooperation), and Okano Yukiko (Deputy Press Secretary).

The delegation’s agenda also includes a visit to one of the Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA) sites in Sri Lanka, showcasing Japan’s commitment to supporting development projects in the country.

In a separate historic event, President of France Emmanuel Macron is also planning to undertake a brief visit to Sri Lanka on the same evening. During his visit, President Macron will meet with Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil Wickremesinghe to discuss strengthening bilateral ties and addressing shared regional and global challenges.

President Macron, accompanied by French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna and a high-level delegation from the French Government, is currently on an official visit to the Pacific region, traveling to Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea before arriving in Sri Lanka.

State Minister of Provincial Councils & Local Government, Janaka Wakkumbura, revealed plans to fully map all roads belonging to local government (LG) institutions by the year 2025. Speaking at a press conference themed ‘Collective Path to a Stable Country’ held at the Presidential Media Centre (PMC) on Thursday (July 27), the state minister stated that a special gazette notification would be published following the completion of the road mapping process.

This initiative, implemented after 36 years, aims to identify the roads under the purview of relevant local government bodies. In the first phase, a total of 49,200 roads in the North-Western Province have already been marked. The mapping of roads covering a distance of up to 21,000km is being carried out at a rate of Rs. 102 per kilometer.

To address areas without local government-owned bridges, the state minister announced the construction of 160 new Bridge Kits, with 22 Bridge Kits already under construction. The ‘Regional Bridge Kits Project’ has been allocated a budget of Rs. 5,000 million for this year, and a total of Rs. 14,112 million has been earmarked for the project, which is scheduled for completion and public use by 2024.

Wakkumbura also mentioned that the implementation of the recommendations in the report of the Delimitation Committee has been put on hold to avoid impacting the reconciliation process and creating further disarray among local government bodies due to the presentation of facts in the document.

On Thursday, Kuwait carried out the execution of five prisoners, including a Sri Lankan drug dealer and an inmate involved in the 2015 bombing of a Shiite mosque, which claimed 27 lives and was attributed to the Islamic State group.

The executions were conducted at the Central Prison, as confirmed by Kuwait’s Public Prosecution in an official statement. Among the five inmates were Abdulrahman Sabah Idan, the individual convicted for the mosque attack, three individuals convicted of murder, and a Sri Lankan national sentenced for drug-related offenses. Notably, one of the convicted murderers was Egyptian, and the other was of Kuwaiti nationality.

1. The Health Ministry and the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) have successfully reached a consensus to resolve the issue of unpaid electricity bills amounting to Rs. 160 million for seven state hospitals. Among the hospitals with outstanding bills, the Colombo National Hospital’s unpaid electricity charges total Rs. 120 million; the National Dental Hospital, De Soysa Maternity Hospital, Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children, National Eye Hospital, National Institute for Nephrology Dialysis & Transplantation in Maligawatta, and Castle Street Hospital for Women owe a combined sum of Rs. 40 million.
2. Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda attended a closed-door panel discussion organized by the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), New Delhi on Wednesday (July 26), as the lead speaker. The discussion was themed ‘Economic Recovery of Sri Lanka & Visit of the President of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe to India’.
3. A Gazette notification has been issued, lifting the ban that was imposed on five organizations following the Easter Sunday terror attacks in 2019. As per the Gazette, the proscription of the United Thowheeth Jama’ath (UTJ), Ceylon Thowheeth Jama’ath (CTJ), Sri Lanka Thowheeth Jama’ath (SLTJ), All Ceylon Thowheeth Jama’ath (ACTJ), and Jamiyathul Ansaari Sunnathul Mohomadiya (JSM) has been lifted.
4. Kuwait said it executed five prisoners, including a convicted drug dealer from Sri Lanka and an inmate convicted over the bombing of a Shiite mosque in 2015 that killed 27 people and was claimed by the Islamic State group, foreign media reported.
5. Highlighting the significance of establishing a Truth-Seeking Commission to address the ethnic problem’s impact on affected communities, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Sabry has stressed that the commission should operate independently, with the government’s role limited to providing necessary support and facilities; Noted that previous commissions’ proposals on this matter were not adequately implemented, leading to the consideration of models from countries like South Africa to devise a suitable mechanism for Sri Lanka.
6. Two Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) were signed between the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Sri Lanka and the FIUs of Timor Leste and Lao PDR, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) reported.
7. The new board of officers elected for the year 2023/2024 of the Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) met President Ranil Wickremesinghe. They presented their ideas to the President about the introduction of a new salary structure based on market value and performance, the revision of the salaries of doctors undergoing internship training to prevent brain drain, and the revision of allowances for doctors.
8. The Government will be expediting the implementation of Sri Lanka’s first Information and Cyber Security Strategy with a partnership-based approach to protect cyberspace from multinational cyber threats. The Defense Cyber Commands Bill covers all sectors related to electronic communication to protect national security interests, a senior official of the ministry said.
9. The Colombo Lotus Tower plans to launch a new bungee jumping programme by December this year. This will reportedly be the world’s highest bungee jumping event, and will be initiated as per a contract entered by the Colombo Lotus Tower and Singapore Go Bungy Company.
10. Pakistan seal a dominant innings victory over Sri Lanka, completing a 2-0 series triumph and earning crucial points in the ICC World Test Championship 2023-25 standings. Pakistan commenced their WTC25 campaign on a solid note, having registered an away series victory against Sri Lanka in the two-match series.

The Health Ministry and the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) have successfully reached a consensus to resolve the issue of unpaid electricity bills amounting to Rs. 160 million for seven state hospitals.

Among the hospitals with outstanding bills, the Colombo National Hospital’s unpaid electricity charges total Rs. 120 million. Additionally, the National Dental Hospital, De Soysa Maternity Hospital, Lady Ridgeway Hospital for Children, National Eye Hospital, National Institute for Nephrology Dialysis & Transplantation in Maligawatta, and Castle Street Hospital for Women owe a combined sum of Rs. 40 million.

Health Minister Keheliya Rambukwella revealed that after extensive discussions with the CEB and the Auditor General, a decision was made to create a payment schedule in collaboration with the Treasury to settle these outstanding bills.

Dr. Saman Ratnayake, Additional Secretary to the Health Ministry, provided assurance that the state hospitals in question would not face power interruptions as a result of the arrears. The parties involved agreed to settle the three-month arrears within the next two months, and Rs. 120 million has already been allocated to the Colombo National Hospital to clear its unpaid electricity bills.

Several spells of showers will occur in Western and Sabaragamuwa provinces and in Kandy, Nuwara-Eliya, Galle and Matara districts.

Mainly fair weather will prevail elsewhere over the Island.

Fairly strong winds of about 40 kmph can be expected at times in western slopes of the central hills, Northern and North-Central provinces, and in Monaragala, Hambantota and Trincomalee districts.

Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda attended a closed-door panel discussion organized by the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), New Delhi on ‘Economic Recovery of Sri Lanka & Visit of the President of Sri Lanka Ranil Wickremesinghe to India’ as the lead speaker on Wednesday (26).

Opening his remarks, the High Commissioner stated that the Sri Lankan President thanked the Indian Prime Minister and his government for the financial assistance rendered during the recent economic crisis which served as the lifeline towards laying the critical initial steps towards economic stabilization. He also stated that the future India-Sri Lanka cooperation would mainly focus on connectivity and investment which will be founded on a vibrant economic integration strategy.  

High Commissioner Moragoda went onto elaborate the significance of India-Sir Lanka relations and the special status it has reached in the recent past. Commenting on the recent visit of the President of Sri Lanka to New Delhi, High Commissioner stated that the visit not only further strengthened the existing bilateral relationship, but laid a solid foundation towards a vibrant India-Sri Lanka economic partnership.

Further, the High Commissioner also explained the broader contours mentioned in the joint vision statement along with the importance of MoUs that were signed and underlined the necessity of both countries working towards reaping mutual benefits founded on the key pillars of connectivity and integration, which are expected to be implemented through five key enablers stated in the India-Sri Lanka Economic Partnership Vision.    

Former Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Ambassador Ashok Kantha and Professor and Dean of the Office of International Affairs and Global Initiatives, Jindal University Ambassador Mohan Kumar also shared their views on the theme along with High Commissioner Moragoda. 

The ICWA was established in 1943 by a group of eminent intellectuals led by Sir Tej Bahadur Sapru and Dr. H.N. Kunzru. Its principal objective was to create an Indian perspective on international relations and act as a repository of knowledge and thinking on foreign policy issues. The ICWA is funded by the Ministry of External Affairs and enjoys full autonomy.

Director General – ICWA Ambassador Vijay Thakur Singh, former Indian diplomats, officials of the ICWA, and members of the leading New Delhi based Think Tanks were also present at the event along with scholars and research personalities.  

High Commission of Sri Lanka

New Delhi

27 July 2023

Colombo, 27.7.23 – Dr. Harsha de Silva, the pioneer of 1990 Suwa Seriya Ambulance Service, is elated to commemorate its 7th anniversary today (28). This momentous occasion celebrates the unwavering commitment to the safety and well-being of the people of Sri Lanka and reaffirms the dedication to providing unparalleled support to maintain this indispensable service, regardless of any challenges that may arise.

In its seven years of operation, 1990 Suwa Seriya has emerged as the most efficient public service in Sri Lanka, achieving remarkable milestones. With a staggering 6,609,357 calls answered and 1,581,554 emergencies attended, the service has proven to be a lifeline for countless individuals in critical situations.

Dr. Harsha de Silva recalled the early days of the service, acknowledging the strong opposition from trade unions and the financial struggles faced during the economic crisis. He expressed heartfelt gratitude for the invaluable support received from the private sector, which played a pivotal role in keeping the service operational. Today, 1990 Suwa Seriya stands tall as the savior of the nation, a testament to the enduring spirit of unity and collaboration.

The success of 1990 Suwa Seriya would not have been possible without the unwavering support of various individuals and entities. Dr. Harsha de Silva extended his appreciation to everyone involved, including former President Ranil Wickramasinghe, whose support was instrumental in establishing the service. He also acknowledged the dedicated Directors, particularly the Chairman of Suwa Seriya Foundation, Dumindra Ratnayake, and the tireless staff who work day and night to ensure the service’s seamless functioning.

Since its inception on July 28, 2016, 1990 Suwa Seriya has attended to approximately 15,000,000 patients, setting an exceptional standard in emergency response times. Responding to calls within an astounding 8 minutes and 45 seconds in Colombo and 14 minutes and 29 seconds outside Colombo, the service has earned a reputation for its exceptional efficiency.

Dr. Harsha de Silva reaffirmed his commitment to maintaining and enhancing the 1990 Suwa Seriya Ambulance Service for the greater good of the nation, emphasizing the critical importance of its continued existence as an indispensable lifeline for the people of Sri Lanka.

He also expressed profound gratitude for India’s invaluable support in kickstarting this initiative, especially acknowledging the unwavering backing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who heeded his call and has remained ever-supportive throughout the journey.

On this joyous occasion, Dr. Harsha de Silva extends his heartfelt regards to all the board members and 1500 dedicated staff, acknowledging their dedication and perseverance in ensuring the success of this vital service.

About 1990 Suwa Seriya:

1990 Suwa Seriya, established on July 28, 2016, is dedicated to providing timely and life-saving pre-hospital care to those in need, making a significant impact on emergency response in Sri Lanka.

Admiral (Prof) Jayanath Colombage presented the Letter of Credence to the Secretary-General of ASEAN Dr Kao Kim Hourn on 26 July 2023 assuming the post as the Ambassador of Sri Lanka to ASEAN.

The Ambassador highlighted Sri Lanka’s Look East policy, current activities of Sri Lanka with the member states of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) to join RCEP, and Sri Lanka’s interest in becoming Sectoral Dialogue Partner in ASEAN, especially in ASEAN Maritime Outlook and Blue Economy.

The Secretary General of ASEAN appreciated the efforts taken by Sri Lanka to overcome the economic challenges and emphasized that Sri Lanka plays a critical role in ASEAN Regional Forum while engaging in a friendly relationship with all countries. Further, the Secretary General appraised Sri Lanka’s interest in becoming Sectoral Dialogue Partner in ASEAN.

Embassy of Sri Lanka

Jakarta

27 July 2023