JEDDAH, 13 May 2008 — A delegation of Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), headed by its Vice Chairman Mazen Batterjee and comprising Secretary General Mustafa A.M. Sabri is leaving for Sri Lanka tomorrow.
Announcing this at a meeting of the delegation yesterday, Sri Lankan Consul General Abdul Latiff Mohamed Lafeer said that the team would sign a memorandum of understanding with Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Nawaz Rajabdeel, explore joint economic activities including new business partnerships and investments. Tea, gem and jewelry will be among the sectors the delegation is interested in.
The visiting team, which also includes Ziad Bassam M. Al-Bassam and Khaled Abdulkader M. Naseef, will meet with Sri Lankan businessmen, visit the island state’s machinery fair for small and medium enterprises (SME 2008), and undertake a sightseeing trip to Kandy, the hill capital of Sri Lanka before returning on Sunday (May 18).
During the meeting, Batterjee evinced keen interest in studying the prospects for recruitment of highly skilled and trained labor and experienced professionals. “We need experienced professionals like accountants and academics,” he added.
The consul general said that the Indian Ocean island was keen to send as many professionals as the Kingdom would like to have. “They are among the best anywhere,” he said. Saudi Arabia is home to more than half a million Sri Lankan expatriates, 125,000 of them in Jeddah alone.
