Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka Prof. G.L. Peiris concluded a successful two-day official visit to India on Tuesday (8) after holding talks on mutual strategic interests  abd defence ties of the two countries.

The National Security Advisor of India and the Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka discussed a range of issues pertaining to the mutual strategic interests of the two countries. 

The status of the bilateral relationship was reviewed and priority areas for future cooperation were discussed.

The Foreign Minister undertook his maiden visit to New Delhi after assuming office as the Foreign Minister in August last year, on an invitation extended by the External Affairs Minister of India Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.

During the visit, Foreign Minister Peiris met with his counterpart Dr. Jaishankar and the National Security Advisor of India Shri Ajit Doval.

Indian Foreign Secretary Shri Harsh Vardhan Shringla also called on the Foreign Minister.

The meeting between the two Ministers, followed by delegation-level talks was held on 07th February at the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi.

During the meeting, Minister Peiris thanked the External Affairs Minister of India for the invitation and the warm hospitality extended to him and his delegation.

Observing that the relationship between India and Sri Lanka has evolved from a transactional relationship into a strategic partnership, Foreign Minister Peiris stated that it is increasingly recognized by the people of Sri Lanka that India is a true friend whom Sri Lanka can rely on at all times.

In this context, Minister Peiris appreciated the financial assistance that the Government of India has extended to Sri Lanka to the tune of 2.4 billion USD at this critical juncture. Minister Jaishankar assured that the long-standing friendship between the two countries will always be a source of support to Sri Lanka.

The bilateral talks focussed on a wide range of matters of mutual interest, which included economic cooperation, power and energy cooperation, connectivity, people to people contact etc.

Particular attention was drawn to the energy security of Sri Lanka, and referring to the recently inked Trincomalee Oil Tank Farm agreements, Foreign Minister Peiris stated that it signals a closer integration between two countries, resulting in substantial benefits; a win-win situation for both.

The prospects for renewable energy cooperation, particularly in wind and solar power sectors were also discussed at the talks.

Focussing on the economic development in Sri Lanka, the discussion centred on the potential for Indian investments in priority sectors such as pharmaceuticals, food processing and manufacturing for which Minister Peiris invited Indian investments.

The ways and means to harness the growing Indian outward tourism to revive tourism industry in Sri Lanka were also discussed.

With a view to maintaining the momentum of the trajectory of the Indo-Lanka relationship, the Ministers agreed on the early finalization of several agreements and MoUs in the areas of defence, culture and education, that are pending between the two countries.

During the talks, Foreign Minister Peiris also raised the fisheries issue with the Indian External Affairs Minister. Terming it as a ‘flashpoint’, the Foreign Minister pointed out that it has become a recurring issue, assuming a different complexion. The two sides agreed on the urgent need to convene all bilateral mechanisms in this regard.

Minister Peiris extended an invitation to Minister Jaishankar to undertake an official visit to Sri Lanka in March this year. He also stated that Sri Lanka is very much looking forward for Prime Minister of India to visit Sri Lanka for the forthcoming BIMSTEC Summit in March 2022.

The Foreign Minister, during his visit to New Delhi had a number of interactions with prominent Indian print and electronic media as well.Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris was accompanied to these meetings by Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to India Milinda Moragoda and senior officials of the High Commission of Sri Lanka in New Delhi and the Foreign Ministry.

 The Central Bank is currently taking steps to increase the inflows of foreign remittances to Sri Lanka as well as encourage the use of formal remittance channels when sending remittances to the country.

 Accordingly, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka initiated a National Remittance Mobile Application branded as “Lanka Remit”. 

It has been introduced and developed by LankaClear (Pvt) Ltd. The National Remittance Mobile Application “Lanka Remit” was launched on 8th February by. Minister Namal Rajapaksa, Minister of Youth and Sports, and State Minister of Digital Technology and Enterprise Development of Sri Lanka. 

The “Lanka Remit” National Remittance Mobile Application, provide Sri Lankans working abroad direct access to the existing remittance channels, as well as facilitate their ability to choose more convenient and cost-effective remittance channels to send money to Sri Lanka. 

Bank of Ceylon, People’s Bank, Sampath Bank PLC, Hatton National Bank PLC, National Savings Bank, Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC, Nations Trust Bank, National Development Bank PLC, Cargills Bank Limited, Mobitel Private Limited and Dialog Axiata PLC are already in connection with “Lanka Remit” while other remittance service providers are expected to join in the near future. 

“Lanka Remit” also expects to offer a number of value-added services such as direct bill payment facility from overseas and to facilitate remittances to Sri Lanka using cards issued overseas. The Central Bank of Sri Lanka is promoting “Lanka Remit” with the support of stakeholders including the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Foreign Relations, Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment and Bankers’ Association of Sri Lanka

Government is set to introduce a Unitary Digital Identity framework  for Sri Lankans with Indian grant, official sources confirmed.  

A Memorandum of Understanding will be signed with India to obtain  this  grant to implement the Digital Identity scheme ,Ministry of  Technology announced. 
It has decided to prioritise the implementation of this Framework for Sri Lanka as a national level programme.  

Under the proposed Unitary Digital Identity Framework, it is expected to introduce a personal identity verification device based on bio metric data, a digital tool that can represent the identities of individuals in cyberspace.
The identification of individual identities can be accurately verified in digital and physical environments by combining the two devices, a senior official of the ministry disclosed.  

During the bilateral talks between the President and the Prime Minister of India in December 2019, the Government of India agreed to provide a grant to implement the Unitary Digital Identity framework.

Accordingly, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal made by the President in his capacity as the Minister of Technology, to work towards the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to obtain the said grant and to implement the proposed project under that grant.

It also comes amid substantive economic assistance from India – totalling US $ 1.4 billion since the beginning of this year – to Sri Lanka, to help the island nation cope with its dollar crunch, and import food, medicines and fuel amid frequent shortages.
While India has confirmed support for Sri Lanka’s effort to transition to a digital identity system, there is no official information yet on the value of the grant, and whether it would include technological support or training. Queried on the specifics of the agreement, Colombo-based official sources said the terms of the agreement are “being worked out”.

This is not the first time that Sri Lanka is attempting to digitise its citizens’ identities. Just a few years ago, the predecessor Maithripala Sirisena-Ranil Wickremesinghe administration, in power from 2015 to 2019, mooted a similar Electronic National Identity Card or E-NIC that privacy advocates opposed on grounds that the state would have full access to citizens’ personal data in a central database.  
The former Mahinda Rajapaksa government tried initiating the project as early as 2011. Neither project was implemented.

The unitary digital identification framework has been prepared jointly by Sri Lanka Information and Communication Technology Agency (ICTA) and the Department of Registration of Persons whereas implementation of the project of electronic national identity cards has been recognised as one component under it,” Minister  Ramesh Pathirana said.  

Granting approval for the unitary digital identification framework for Sri Lanka that has been finalised by the Committee entrusted with the planning of the relevant programmes.