British PM appoints trade envoy for Sri Lanka

British Prime Minister Theresa May has appointed MP Ranil Jayawardena as her trade envoy for Sri Lanka. Jayawardena’s role as trade envoy will be to support and enhance the development of Britain’s trade and investment with Sri Lanka. 

The Prime Minister’s trade envoy will be visiting Sri Lanka from 15 to 17 February to meet with senior members of the government and engage with British businesses working in Sri Lanka. Jayawardena was elected as the Member of Parliament for Northeast Hampshire in May 2015 and was re-elected in 2017.  He has a degree in government from the London School of Economics.  In Parliament, he is the chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Sri Lanka.  Jayawardena’s father is of Sri Lankan origin. Jayawardena said: “Given the shared history and close bonds of friendship between Britain and Sri Lanka – and with my family ties to Sri Lanka – I am looking forward to serving as the Prime Minister’s trade envoy at an exciting time for both our countries. There’s lots of scope for further trade and investment between Britain and Sri Lanka. I recently visited ‘Port City’, one among many initiatives that the Sri Lankan Government is pushing forward, which demonstrates its commitment to creating the right conditions for economic growth. Port City will provide a range of opportunities for UK-based professional services to work with Sri Lankan partners to take forward our shared ambitions to develop international business. I am confident that engagement by the UK’s professional services sector will help Port City to attract international investment and build its reputation.”

British High Commissioner to Sri Lanka James Dauris said: “For centuries, Britain has been a global trading nation. Today we have one of the world’s largest economies and strong commercial relationships with countries around the globe. As the Sri Lankan economy grows, we are seeing an encouraging increase in the number of British companies wanting to do business with Sri Lanka. Mr. Jayawardena’s appointment will help us to encourage more UK firms to look at options for doing business in and with Sri Lanka and to boost bilateral trade.”