Sri Lanka, India decide to take ETCA talks forward

Sri Lanka and India on Friday agreed to take negotiations for a win-win Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) forward.

The decision was made during the Indo-Lanka Joint Commission meeting held on Friday after a lapse of three years.  Official sources said discussions on Friday in Colombo between India’s visiting Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and her Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera took stock of the preparations underway on both sides to begin negotiations on the ETCA. Preliminary discussions had been held during the 4th  Commerce Secretary level talks in New Delhi on 21 December 2015. 

India will be holding a workshop in early March in Colombo on Non-Tariff Barriers (NTB) and Phytosanitary Barriers (PTB) regulations and procedures. Cognisance was taken of the reconstitution of the CEOs Forum and the proposals from the Export Promotion Board of Sri Lanka for increasing trade linkages. The Joint Commission also discussed ways of further collaboration in various projects that have been under discussion, including the upgrade of the Palali Airport, infrastructure development at Kankesanturai Port, Sampur power plant and a Special Economic Zone in Trincomalee, etc.