“Will leverage power of media to promote practical cooperation between SL – China”
We will “continue to leverage the power of media to support the high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, and to promote practical cooperation between our two countries in port economy, modern agriculture, digital economy, green economy, and cultural tourism, contributing to Sri Lanka’s comprehensive development,” a leading official of the China Media Group (CMG) said.
Ms. Liao Li, Deputy Director of the CMG Asia Pacific, said this during a local session on the Global Dialogue on Innovation – Openness – Shared Development.
The event, held in Colombo on Oct. 28, was co-organised by the China Media Group (CMG) and the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Sri Lanka.
Shouldn’t be limited to buzz words or themes
Addressing the event, Minister of Labour and Deputy Minister of Finance & Planning- Dr. Anil Jayantha Fernando said, “Always, innovation deals with risk and challenges. But at the same time it creates its own opportunities and potential… The way forward is very clear. As we say, Innovation, Openness and the Shared Development, should not be limited to mere buzz words or themes. We need to take lots of efforts to put that into practices. “
He also said that we can make efforts on a national level to face issues like crime, corruption and drugs,. “But the final solution rather depends on how best we cooperate at global level,” he added.
“We strongly believe that innovation will provide the means of finding solutions for these issues while the openness connects us… bridges us to face these challenges and the shared prosperity and development provides the moral support for us. Together we can… overcome these challenges…
China stands ready to work closely with Sri Lanka
Meanwhile, Chinese ambassador in Sri Lanka – Mr. Qi Zhenhong pointed out that China’s 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030), the country’s innovation will keep surging while, the country’s doors will open wider. He also added that China will share even brighter development prospects with the world during this period.
He further noted :
As a traditional friend and cooperative partner of China, China’s progress in the next five years will open up brighter development prospects for Sri Lanka. At the beginning of this year, President Dissanayake paid a successful visit to China. Our two leaders reached important consensus and cooperation outcomes, which provided new strategic guidance for the development of our bilateral relations. Two weeks ago, Prime Minister Amarasuriya also concluded a successful visit to China. During their meetings, Predident Xi Jinping noted that China and Sri Lanka are fellow travelers on the path toward development and revitalization, and good partners of win-win cooperation. Currently, President Disanayake is leading the Sri Lankan people in striving to realize the vision of a “A Thriving Nation and a Beautiful Life,” by formulating and implementing three key plans: “Clean Sri Lanka,” “Digital Sri Lanka,” and “Rural Development.” These initiatives are highly consistent with the relevant contents of China’s 15th Five-Year Plan. China stands ready to work closely with Sri Lanka to strengthen the comprehensive alignment of our development strategies and plans, continue the advancement of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and expand the scope and depth of collaboration on various fields including port economy, modern agriculture, digital economy, green economy, poverty reduction, tourism, among others. With these efforts, we can better boost Sri Lanka’s economic and social development. Let us join hands to carry forward and build upon the China-Sri Lanka friendship carefully nurtured by generations, and together forge a China-Sri Lanka community with a shared future.
The event also featured a dialogue and exchange session featuring Mr. Indrananda Abeysekera – the President of the Association for Sri Lanka China Social and Cultural Coopperation, Prof. Indika Karunathilake – Vice Chancellor of the University of Colombo, Mr. Bernard Goonetilleke – Chairman of the Pathfinder Foundation and Mr, Xiong Hongfeng – General Manager, Managing Director of CHEC Port City Colombo.
