Statement made by H.E Mr Mohan Pieris, Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations at the seventh Forum on Financing for Development (FfD Forum)
My Dear Fellow Sri Lankans,
Presently, our country is facing a difficult time for a multitude of reasons, which has resulted in scarcity of, among other things, certain medical equipment and pharmaceuticals.
This includes considerable amounts of vital medical supplies such as orthopedic implants, anti-cancer drugs, reagents and consumable used at Blood banks, HLA testing, HIV-AIDS testing reagents and laboratory reagents which are imported from, USA, Europe and Australia.
I shall be most grateful if you could facilitate the procurement of any one or more items given in the attached list provided by the State Ministry of Production, Supply and Regulation of Pharmaceuticals.
The Sri Lanka Mission will be happy to facilitate matters in this regard. We are happy to accept your in-kind donations and facilitate sending them back to Sri Lanka at this moment of need.
Please contact Mr. Chatura Weerasekera, First Secretary on +1 646 660 2777 or email: chathura.weerasekara@mfa.gov.lk for further information.
Mohan Pieris
Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations
Media Release
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs notes that attention has been focused on the revision of the U.S. Travel Advisory on Sri Lanka as at 6 April 2022.
The Ministry recalls that since June 2021, with the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Travel Advisory for Sri Lanka has remained at Level 3, and as such has not been newly introduced in the latest revision. In addition, the language related to ‘terrorism’ was introduced following the Easter Sunday attacks and has stayed consistent since April 2019. It is understood that the reference to terrorism in the U.S. Travel Advisory is based on standard language included in U.S. Travel Advisories around the world where a risk of terrorism exists or has existed, and as such is not specific to Sri Lanka. The Ministry also understands that currently a U.S. Travel Advisory at Level 4 is applicable to many countries, whereas Sri Lanka is at Level 3.
The tourism industry in Sri Lanka is gradually emerging from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and as at 29 March 2022, tourist arrivals to the country stood at 280,026. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to reiterate that the country remains safe and open for tourists. Sri Lanka continues to welcome travellers to the country and remains committed to provide all visitors with the utmost care and service. The recent peaceful protests have not targeted tourists or tourist destinations. All visitors to the country may travel freely throughout the country and all tourist destinations remain open. It is noteworthy that CNN’s “where to travel in 2022” had featured Colombo in their travel list.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Colombo
08 April, 2022
Sri Lanka Tourism is navigating the current macro-environmental conditions in the country with great care, taking all necessary measures to ensure continuity of regular operations with minimum interruptions. In this regard a special operations unit has been set up within Sri Lanka Tourism to facilitate with all required assistance for tourists who are already in Sri Lanka and to provide accurate information for potential visitors planning visits to Sri Lanka. The unit will be a 24/7 operation that can be reached through, hotline 1912 (within Sri Lanka) or +94112426800 (outside Sri Lanka) and via email info@srilanka.travel.