Canada’s relations with Sri Lanka began with Colombo Plan By: Upali Obeyesekere – Special Correspondent, SriLankan Anchorman The Colombo Plan for Cooperative Economic and Social Development in Asia and the Pacific was conceived at the Commonwealth Conference on Foreign Affairs held in Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in January 1950 and was launched on 1 July 1951 as a cooperative venture for the economic and social advancement of the peoples of South and Southeast Asia. Many prominent persons represented their respective countries at this Conference such as Percy Spender, Minister for External Affairs, Australia; Ernest Bevin, Foreign Secretary, Britain; Lester Pearson, Minister for External Affairs (Later Prime Minister), Canada; Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister and Minister for External Affairs, India; Fredrick Doidge, Minister for External Affairs, New Zealand; Ghulam Mohammed, Minister of Finance, Pakistan and D.S. Senanayake, Prime Minister of Ceylon and J.R. Jayewardene, then Finance Minister and later President of Sri Lanka. This memorable conference gave birth to Canada’s bilateral relations with Sri Lanka. A historical fact of record worth sharing is that December 14, 1955 was a red letter day for Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) – the day it was admitted as a member of the United Nations Organization (UNO now referred to as UN). Interestingly, Sri Lanka received this status seven years after gaining independence from Britain. It was on January 5, 1950, a North Star aircraft of No. 412 Squadron made its round-the-world flight, a first by the Royal Canadian Air Force. On board was Canada’s External Affairs Minister Lester B. Pearson, en route to a Commonwealth foreign ministers’ conference in Ceylon. This historic meeting in 1950 was the catalyst that shaped the future of international cooperation between the western world with South and Southeast Asia. Ever since, Canada has been a generous benevolent partner to Sri Lanka. Canada has been a long standing development cooperation partner with Sri Lanka, dating back to the 1950s. At the very beginning Sri Lanka had been a recipient of technical assistance from Canada under the Colombo Plan. Canada provided financial and technical assistance to complete the construction of the Colombo International Airport, and as a result, the road to the airport was named as Canada-Sri Lanka Friendship Road. The Hardy Technical Training Institute in Amparai, and the extension of Gal Oya transmission lines were also financed by the Government of Canada. The Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) has provided financial and technical assistance to Sri Lanka since its inception in 1968. CIDA has also been working closely with the United Nations Development Programme and UNICEF to assist the conflict related humanitarian and rehabilitation needs in Sri Lanka. Following the Tsunami in December 2004, CIDA provided humanitarian assistance to the Tsunami affected communities as well. In the year 2009 CIDA allocated a sum of C$ 22.5 million as humanitarian and other related aid to Sri Lanka, especially to assist the Internally Displaced Persons, following the defeat of terrorism in May 2009. At the political and diplomatic level Sri lanka and Canada have been maintaining close and cordial links over the years. There have been many visits between the two countries at the highest levels. Sri Lanka and Canada has worked closely together at the bilateral and multilateral level. Major Project Funding - From 1954 to 1961, Canada gifted a fleet of fourteen General Motors manufactured locomotives (trains) to Sri Lanka Railways. The names of the engines were derived from the cities and provinces of Canada. Viz: Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan, British Columbia, Quebec, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, Montreal and Vancouver. Two other Canadian engines were named Kankesanthurai and Galle. The next major project aided by Canada was the Katunayaka International Airport in 1963. The Royal Ceylon Air Force runway is extended from 1840 to 3350 meters. Terminal building is constructed to hold 150,000 passengers per year. In 1964, Sri Lanka Minister of Communications Anil Moonesinghe under Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike’s government commenced the construction of a new international airport to replace the Ratmalana Airport, with Canadian Aid. In 1965 Katunayaka International Airport underwent a major expansion program with Canadian assistance and this project was completed the same year. The third project was one of the largest aid program ever undertaken by CIDA (Canadian International Development Agency) that saw a $100 million contribution given towards the construction of the Maduru Oya Reservoir (dam and irrigation scheme) known as the “Mahaweli Project”. According to a case study by David Gilles, McGill University the scope of the project was vast and the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) saw the scheme as a safety valve to relieve population pressures in the island’s overcrowded, Sinhala dominated South and Southwest. This was a megaproject with something for everyone: capital intensive infrastructure, with rich pickings for Western engineering and construction firms, a poverty alleviation component consistent with a Sri Lankan commitment to equality, increased agricultural productivity, and the harnessing of infertile land. Inspitred by the engineering feats of an ancient kingdom and hailed as the world’s largest foreign aid project, the Mahaweli scheme was to be a symbol of progress and national identity. None of these hopes materialized, however. But this is another matter, best left alone. In response to the tsunami of December 2004, the Canadian government and individual Canadians pledged an unprecedented amount of assistance for relief, recovery and reconstruction projects in Sri Lanka. Annual bilateral assistance is approximately $6 million, and in 2009, Canada announced up to $22.5 million in humanitarian assistance. Canada also contributed $130,000 to the Commonwealth Expert Team, which monitored the January 2010 presidential elections. Diplomatic Representation - It was in 1953 that Canada established its diplomatic presence in Colombo primarily due to the goodwill enjoyed by the two countries as founding members of the Commonwealth. Sri Lanka reciprocated when it established its first resident Mission in Ottawa in 1958 and R.S.S. (later Sir Senarat) Gunewardena is on record as the first High Commissioner for Ceylon in Canada. Subsequently, under the direction of Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar (since departed) Sri Lanka established its Consulate General’s office in Toronto in 2001. Currently the resident Heads of Mission include Ms. Shelley Whiting, Canadian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka. H.E. Chitranganee Wagiswara, Sri Lanka`s High Commissioner to Canada and Mr. Asoka Godawita, Acting Consul General for Sri Lanka in Toronto. It is estimated that around 200,000 - 250,000 Canadians of Sri Lankan origin live throughout the length and breadth of this great country. Early migrants from Ceylon arrived in Canada in the mid fifties and settled down in Montreal and Vancouver, besides Toronto. Merchandise Trade with Sri Lanka - Total merchandise trade between Canada and Sri Lanka stood at CAD510,977 in 2012 with Canadian merchandise imports at CAD18.2 million, 58.25 percent of which consisted of woven and knit apparel. Canadian merchandise exports to Sri Lanka for 2012 stood at CAD319.3 million. Canada has established an important share of the Sri Lankan merchandise import market for wheat and other agriculture commodities. Almost 84.5 percent of Canadian merchandise exports to Sri Lanka in 2012 were in wheat. Wheat exports remain the single most valuable item exported by Canada to Sri Lanka. A sequel to this article will be published in the May 2014 issue of Sri Lankan Anchorman when 2013 figures are published.
Posted on: Thu, 03 Apr 2014 14:40:09 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015