He was speaking in Colombo today to mark the birthday of his majesty the emperor of Japan, and to mark the country's National Day, which falls tomorrow.
"Japan and Sri Lanka have enjoyed over six decades of friendly relations, and Japan has always supported Sri Lanka during both good times and difficult times... It has started to support economic development soon after Sri Lanka's independence and its total contribution amounts to more than Rs. 1,500 billion," he said.
"As regards the promotion of investment and trade, Japan welcomes the intentions of Sri Lanka to develop a better climate to attract foreign investment including Japanese companies... There is growing interest by the Japanese business community to strengthen business with Sri Lanka and we are hopeful that more trade and investments are coming," the ambassador added.
The ambassador also said they welcomed "this government's ambitious plans to restructure the economy" and they "looked forward to the various initiatives that are underway, such as the megapolis projects."
He further said that Japan will also continue to support Sri Lanka's efforts in national reconciliation and peace building as well as cultural exchanges between the two countries.
"I am certain that the relationship between Japan and Sri Lanka will go from strength to strength and that next year will be a year when our bilateral ties will gather momentum," the ambassador concluded.
The complete message of the Japanese ambassador to Sri Lanka is as follows :
MESSAGE OF H.E. NICHI SUGANUMA AMBASSADOR OF JAPAN TO Sm LANKA ON THE OCCASION OF THE BIRTHDAY OF HIS MAJESTY THE EMPEROR OF JAPAN
(23rd December 2015)
It is my great pleasure to convey this special message on the occasion of the birthday of His Majesty the Emperor.
Emperor Akihito become the 125th Emperor of Japan on 7 January 1989,
and will celebrate the 82"d birthday today. Their Majesties are in good health and are energetically performing many State duties.
They are also very keen on visiting various regions in Japan to meet people and see their day-to-day life. Whenever a big disaster hits japan, they go into the area and try to encourage the affected population.
Their Majesties visited Sri Lanka officially in 1981, when they were Crown Prince and Princess. They still cherish very fond memories of the visit and are hoping that the friendly relations between the two countries will be further promoted.
Japan and Sri Lanka have enjoyed over six decades of friendly relations, and Japan has always supported Sri Lanka during both good times and difficult times. It has started to support economic development soon after Sri Lanka's independence and its total contribution amounts to more than 1,500 billion Rupees. Some of the major projects include Port of Colombo, Sri Jayawardenepura General Hospital, Upper Kotmale Hydro Power Plant, and Bandaranaike International Airport. During the difficult times of conflict too, we supported Sri Lanka in trying to broker peace and organized international conferences to collect humanitarian assistance.
Now again, with the election of President Maithripala Sirisena, and the formation of a coalition Government, we hope to revitalize our relations. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe visited Japan last October, and a "Joint Declaration on Comprehensive Partnership between Japan and Sri Lanka", with particular focus on (i) Promotion of Investment and Trade, (ii) Cooperation on the National Development Plan in Sri Lanka, and (iii) Support for National Reconciliation and Peace building was adopted.
As regards the promotion of investment and trade, Japan welcomes the intentions of Sri Lanka to develop a better climate to attract foreign investment including Japanese companies. There is growing interest by the Japanese business community to strengthen business with Sri Lanka and we are hopeful that more trade and investments are coming.
We also welcome this government's ambitious plans to restructure the economy. We look forward to the various initiatives that are underway, such as the megapolis projects. Japan is a committed partner in supporting sustainable economic growth in Sri Lanka through our Official Development Assistance(ODA), and intends to continue to work together with the government of Sri Lanka to develop, for example, transport system in Colombo, transmission lines and water supply systems in Anuradhapura as well as to strengthen the communities in conflict affected areas.
Japan will also continue to support Sri Lanka's efforts in national reconciliation and peace building. We are offering any assistance needed in establishing the four tier mechanisms for reconciliation planned by the new Government. We also started to work on the idea of holding an international conference to support the reconstruction of conflict-affected areas and to discuss about several projects to develop its economy.
Cultural exchanges and people-to-people exchanges are another area where we could also witness deepening ties between our two countries.
On this happy occasion of the birthday of His Majesty the Emperor of Japan, it is my great pleasure to assure the strong support of the Government and people of Japan to the Government and people of Sri Lanka, and I would also like to express my earnest wishes for a lasting peace and prosperity in Sri Lanka. I am certain that the relationship between Japan and Sri Lanka will go from strength to strength and that next year will be a year when our bilateral ties will gather momentum.
Thank You
