RIYADH: New Sri Lankan Ambassador to the Kingdom Ahmed Aflel Jawad said that his mission in Riyadh would serve as a beacon to all Sri Lankans by looking after their interests in Saudi Arabia and promoting bilateral relations between the island and the Kingdom.
“I will try my level best to take Saudi-Lanka ties to a new high,” said the envoy.
The ambassador, who arrived here on Monday, told Arab News that his mission is to work for the welfare of the 500,000 Sri Lankan workers in the Kingdom and strengthen two-way relations between the two countries in trade, politics and culture.
In the field of trade between the two countries, he observed that 75 percent of the island’s exports to the Kingdom remain tea and that the balance includes some 15 other products.
He said that there are plenty of other nontraditional exports that could find easy access into the Kingdom’s market.
He stressed that he would also make all efforts to encourage investment from the Kingdom since the island could offer a wide range of opportunities for Saudi investors. “Sri Lanka is the most attractive investment zone in Asia,” he said.
“I am happy to note that there is a 101 percent increase in Saudi tourists to Sri Lanka with the end of the ethnic conflict on May 19,” he noted, adding that the hill resorts have become popular destinations among Saudis visiting the island.
The ambassador inaugurated the Charity Fair organized by the Sri Lankan Expatriates Society in Riyadh on Thursday.
The proceeds of the fair will be diverted to the Free Medical Clinic run by the society.
Prior to his posting to the Kingdom, Jawad was the director general of economic affairs at the Foreign Ministry in Colombo. He has served in Stockholm, Paris and Beijing.
Jawad succeeds Abdul Ageed Mohamed Marleen who died in his sleep on June 23 while he was attending a conference in Yemen.
