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US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Atul Keshap – Pic by Lasantha Kumara
By Senuri de Silva
The United States has made a $ 40 million funding plan for Sri Lanka this year with its new envoy indicating the likelihood of greater bilateral engagement.
Speaking at the American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) Sri Lanka Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, Atul Keshap said that bilateral ties had grown stronger due to the changes that had taken place in Sri Lanka.
“The increasing number of agreements signed between the two countries was not due to a change of policy on the part of the US Government, whose commitment to maintaining ties with Sri Lanka has been unwavering. The change has been brought on by the remarkable changes that have taken place in Sri Lanka,” he said.
Keshap made these remarks with reference to the “change ushered in by voters at the January presidential election and ratified by the voters of Sri Lanka at the recent parliamentary elections”.
As a result he says, “Today we have a partnership with a Government that shares our commitment to boosting bilateral trade and investment.”
Recently, the US Embassy signed an agreement to create a $ 2.6-million program with the Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry to boost justice sector reform, according to a senior US diplomat.
The program is expected to “boost corporation on justice sector reform and capacity building on addressing complex crimes and advancing the rule of law”, Keshap said.
The agreement is also a part of a larger shared vision between the two countries to create a more “unified, peaceful, reconciled and democratic Sri Lanka where justice and opportunities are available to all citizens”.
In addition to this, Keshap also brought up the agreement signed last Thursday with which USAID finalised a $ 2 million donation to carry out a 12-month project aimed at strengthening the Government’s management of public finances.
The matter is of special concern to the US Government, according to Keshap, as it keeps with their overall strategy of supporting Sri Lanka’s anti-corruption efforts and recognises that transparent public finance practices benefit businesses both here and abroad and the nation as a whole.
The main aims of this project will include public procurement systems, internal and external audit capabilities and policy and fiscal analysis in areas related to project procurement and public finance.
The ambassador pointed out that these were just two of the elements of a $40 million plan for bilateral cooperation with Sri Lanka this year.
According to him, the President and Prime Minister were committed to levelling the playing field for foreign businesses in Sri Lanka, which he said bode well for the economy as many US companies had expressed a strong desire to do business in Sri Lanka.
Some of the areas these companies wished to invest in included economic sectors such as energy and transport. The ambassador pointed out that the success of any one of these proposals would send a positive message to other companies that wished to invest in Sri Lanka in the future.
