Dr Sarath Amunugama,
Minister of Enterprise Development and Investment Promotion received a
high-powered German business delegation from Cologne. The delegation
consisted of senior officials from the reputed companies headed by Ernst
Vleer, President of Pro Gast and official representative of the City of
Cologne, Guido Gesselmann, Vice President of Eloma, Dirk Lienkamper,
President, Meiko, Michael Hertel, Regional Manager of Meiko, and Mr
Virendra Dutt , Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Meiko
Asia. Chairman/ Director General Dhammika Perera, Duminda Ariyasinghe,
Executive Director (Promotion), Ms. Gowri Rajapaksa, Executive Director
(Investment), Ms Nilupul De Silva, Director (Promotion) and Dilip
S.Samarasinghe Director (Media & Publicity) represented the BOI at this
meeting.The three companies represented are engaged in manufacturing
equipment for clients such as hotels, flight kitchens and even for
submarines. Meiko make industrial washing machines, Eloma are major
manufacturers of industrial ovens and Pro Gast have funded many Sri Lankan
promotional activities and developed exchanges between the German city of
Cologne and Sri Lanka.
They are in Sri Lanka to identify potential markets and also explore
possibilities of investing in the country. This visit by the German
enterprises is the follow-up of an earlier BOI promotional mission to
Germany in September 2008, which was undertaken in collaboration with Sri
Lanka’s Consul General in Frankfurt.
Minister Amunugama welcomed this delegation and described the current
status of economic relations between Sri Lanka and Germany. He added that
tourism plays an important role in the development of the hotel sector.
India’s growth would also boost demand for travel to Sri Lanka. Currently
there are approximately 147 flights per week to India serving 15
destinations. In addition the Free Trade Agreement between Sri Lanka and
India has boosted bilateral trade between the two countries. Hence German
trade and investment with Sri Lanka would benefit considerably from the
immense contribution of the Indian economic growth.
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