Diaspora vows to help rebuild Lanka

Lakshmi de Silva

Sri Lankans living abroad invited by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to come back and cooperate in bringing an economic boom to Sri Lanka met the President last Saturday.

They expressed their willingness to bring in investment and technology from countries they were living to achieve rapid economic development.

It was a great initiative taken by the President and form this forum to come and see what the country needs, especially since May this year. It was a tremendous opportunity to bring in the Sri Lankans with talent, resources and knowledge living abroad Arvi Wijay living in California for the past 25 years told Daily News. The Central Bank, Tourist Board and the BoI made useful presentations when we met the Prime Minister at the Galle Face Hotel.

Wijay who was associated with architectural construction at airports, sea ports, master plans for parking spaces predicted Sri Lanka will be the next economic boom destination and with the vision of the open door policy and President Mahinda Rajapaksa's strategy he was willing to help the country. "But the second step in this initiative of bringing in investment and technology was important," he said.

Chamali Madanayake living in Sweden said that the expatriate Sri Lankans living in the affluent countries were happy to have been invited by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to come and contribute their share for the rapid economic development of the country.

"All sections of Sri Lankans should cooperate with the President but we see some elements trying to sabotage the efforts being made and that was sad. I am engaged in the solar energy industry and I would come back and start providing solar energy units for tea factories in the outstations," he said.

Bandu Gunawardena coordinating with the expatriate Sri Lankans at the President's Office said he was amazed to meet the group of Sri Lankans who had excelled in various disciplines and sectors abroad coming together and he felt these people could help develop the country.

"It was a matter for great happiness to see them coming back to their country and they will be taken to the North to see for themselves the rehabilitation process taking place there.

Over 500 Sri Lankans living in 47 countries came at the invitation of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. "You are stepping into a free country after 30 years. You were the first group of people invited by me to the country to join me in developing the motherland to become an economic power and I am sure we could achieve it together," the President told the members.