At the outset, I wish to reiterate with sincere appreciation the excellent bilateral relationship existing at all levels between Sri Lanka and Saudi Arabia. I also congratulate Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah and the government of Saudi Arabia for the successful conduct of last Haj pilgrimage in which over 6,000 Sri Lankan pilgrims took part. We look forward to working together to make an increased number of Sri Lankan pilgrims perform Haj, the fifth pillar of Islam in future.

On this important day, I recall last year’s National Day message of our President Mahinda Rajapaksa in which he assured the people that Sri Lanka would be made a country where people return to, instead of leaving for fear of life or poverty. He also underlined the need to remove the bureaucratic hurdles on the path to economic development. In this context, I am pleased to note that Sri Lanka has been made a safe haven for tourists and investors who are exploring the endless opportunities that the island offers. I am also pleased to note that the number of unskilled workers leaving abroad for employment is declining. The various duty concessions offered by the Sri Lankan government to foreign investors makes Sri Lanka a better partner in progress. The Consulate General of Sri Lanka will focus on vigorously augmenting bilateral trade, investment and tourism with Saudi Arabia this year under the guidelines of the president’s vision, the ‘Mahinda Chinthana’.

The Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Jeddah will continue to provide the best possible consular assistance to the Sri Lankan community in the western region of Saudi Arabia. I thank the staff of the Consulate General who offer voluntary consular services on Thursdays to the public. I also thank the Sri Lankan expatriate community and various societies and clubs of Sri Lankan dominance and the Sri Lankan International School in Jeddah for their continued support to the Consulate General’s activities. I believe our collective efforts toward the common goal of nation building, is fast becoming a success story.