SOURCE : PRESS INFORMATION BUEREAU | PUBLISHED : 16 DEC 2024
Prime Minister of India His Excellency Shri Narendra Modi and President of Sri Lanka His Excellency Anura Kumara Disanayaka had comprehensive and fruitful discussions at their meeting in New Delhi on 16 December 2024, during the latter’s State Visit to the Republic of India.
2. The two leaders reaffirmed that the India-Sri Lanka bilateral partnership is underpinned by deep-rooted cultural and civilizational ties, geographical proximity and the people-to-people relation.
3. President Disanayaka conveyed his deep appreciation for the unwavering support extended by India to the people of Sri Lanka during and after the unprecedented economic crisis in 2022. Recalling his profound commitment to fulfilling the aspirations of the Sri Lankan people for a prosperous future, greater opportunities, and sustained economic growth, he looked forward to India’s continued support for the achievement of these objectives. Prime Minister Modi assured President Disanayaka of India’s full commitment in this regard, in keeping with the special place Sri Lanka occupies in India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and ‘SAGAR’ vision.
4. Both leaders acknowledged that bilateral ties had deepened over the years and contributed significantly to the socio-economic development of Sri Lanka. Underscoring the potential for further cooperation, both leaders affirmed their commitment to progress the relationship between India and Sri Lanka to a mutually beneficial comprehensive partnership for the well-being of the peoples of the two countries.
Political Exchanges
5. Acknowledging the increased political interactions in the last decade and their contribution towards deepening the bilateral ties, both leaders agreed to further intensify political engagements at leadership and ministerial levels.
6. The two leaders also underscored the importance of regular parliamentary level exchanges to promote democratic values and share expertise on their institutional best practices.
Development Cooperation
7. The two leaders acknowledged the positive and impactful role of India’s development assistance to Sri Lanka that has significantly contributed to its socioeconomic growth. President Disanayaka appreciated India’s continued support for the implementation of projects despite the ongoing debt restructuring. He further acknowledged India’s decision to extend grant assistance for projects that were originally undertaken through Lines of Credit, thereby reducing the debt burden of Sri Lanka.
8. Reaffirming their commitment to work closely in further intensifying people oriented development partnership, both leaders agreed to:
i. Work together for the timely completion of ongoing projects such as Phase III & IV of Indian Housing Project, 3 (three) Islands Hybrid Renewable Energy Project and High Impact Community Development Projects across Sri Lanka;
ii. Extend full support towards timely implementation of projects for the Indian Origin Tamil community, Eastern Province, and solar electrification of religious places in Sri Lanka;
iii. Identify new projects and areas of cooperation for development partnership, in accordance with the needs and priorities of the Government of Sri Lanka.
Training and Capacity Building
9. Underlining India’s role in extending capacity building support to Sri Lanka and factoring the need for customized training and capacity building in different fields in Sri Lanka, the leaders:
i. Agreed to organise focused training of 1500 Sri Lankan civil servants across ministries and departments over a period of five years through the National Centre for Good Governance in India; and
ii. Committed to explore further training programmes for Sri Lankan officials in civil, defence and legal domains among other areas, in keeping with the requirements of Sri Lanka.
Debt Restructuring
10. President Disanayaka thanked Prime Minister Modi for India’s support in stabilizing the Sri Lankan economy through unparalleled and multi-pronged assistance including emergency financing and forex support worth USD 4 billion. He acknowledged India’s crucial assistance in Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process, including as co-chair of the Official Creditors’ Committee (OCC), as being instrumental in finalising the debt restructuring discussions in a timely manner. He further thanked the Government of India for extending financial assistance of USD 20.66 mn to settle payments due from Sri Lanka for projects completed under existing Lines of Credit thereby significantly reducing the debt burden at a critical time.Underscoring the close and special ties with Sri Lanka, Prime Minister Modi reiterated India’s consistent support to the country in times of need and in its quest for economic recovery and stability, and prosperity for its people. The leaders instructed officials to finalize discussions on the bilateral MoU on Debt Restructuring.
11. Both leaders agreed that a strategic shift from debt-driven models towards investment led partnerships across different sectors would ensure a more sustainable path to economic recovery, development and prosperity in Sri Lanka.
Building Connectivity
12. The leaders underlined the importance of greater connectivity and acknowledged the presence of complementarities between the two economies which could be harnessed for economic development and growth of both countries. In this regard:
i. While expressing satisfaction at the resumption of the passenger ferry service between Nagapattinam and Kankesanthurai, they agreed that officials should work towards the early recommencement of the passenger ferry service between Rameshwaram and Talaimannar.
ii. Explore the possibility of jointly working on rehabilitation of Kankesanthurai port in Sri Lanka, which will be implemented with grant assistance from the Government of India.
Energy Development
13. Emphasizing the need for reliable, affordable and timely energy resources for ensuring energy security and meeting basic needs of the people, both leaders underscored the importance of strengthening cooperation in the energy sector and facilitation towards timely implementation of ongoing energy cooperation projects between India and Sri Lanka. In this regard, the leaders agreed to:
i. Take steps towards the implementation of the solar power project in Sampur and further augment its capacity as per the requirements of Sri Lanka.
ii. Continue consideration of the several proposals which are in different stages of discussion including:
(a) supply of LNG from India to Sri Lanka.
(b) establishment of a high-capacity power grid interconnection between India and Sri Lanka.
(c) cooperation amongst India, Sri Lanka and UAE to implement a multi-product pipeline from India to Sri Lanka for supply of affordable and reliable energy.
(d) joint development of offshore wind power potential in Palk Straits, while prioritizing environmental protection including fauna and flora.
14. Acknowledging the ongoing cooperation in the development of Trincomalee Tank Farms, both leaders decided to support the development of Trincomalee as a regional energy and industrial hub.
People-Centric Digitization
15. Acknowledging the successful experience of India in people-centric digitization, which has helped in improving governance, transforming service delivery, ushering transparency, and contributing to social welfare, President Disanayaka conveyed his government’s interest in exploring the establishment of similar systems in Sri Lanka with Indian assistance. Prime Minister Modi conveyed India’s readiness in fully supporting Sri Lanka’s efforts in this regard. In this context, the two leaders agreed to:
i. Expedite implementation of Sri Lanka Unique Digital Identity (SLUDI) project to aid the country in its efforts to improve delivery of government services to the public;
ii. Collaborate on avenues to fully roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) in Sri Lanka with assistance from India.
iii. Establish a Joint Working Group to explore the implementation of a DPI stack in Sri Lanka based on experience and systems already established in India, including advancing ongoing technical discussions on the implementation of DigiLocker in Sri Lanka.
iv. Promote digital financial transactions by extending the use of UPI digital payments for the benefit of both countries and in keeping with payment systems related regulatory guidelines of both countries.
v. Continue bilateral exchanges to garner learnings from India’s Aadhaar platform, GeM portal, PM Gati Shakti digital platform, digitized customs and other taxation procedures, with a view to exploring the benefits of establishing equivalent systems in Sri Lanka.
SOURCE : PRESS INFORMATION BUEREAU | PUBLISHED : 16 DEC 2024
