• What can Sri Lankan industries expect?

By Yakuta Dawood Expo 2020 Dubai, which was initially scheduled to take place last year, was postponed due to concerns pertaining to the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic. After a break, however, organisers decided to have the Expo this year, and Expo 2020 Dubai will begin this Friday (1) and is expected to go up till 31 March 2022. Commenting with regard to this recently, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Chairperson and Expo 2020 Dubai Commissioner General for Sri Lanka Kimarli Fernando stated that despite all constraints and barriers, Sri Lanka was able to come thus far with an aim of partaking in the global arena. “Expo 2020 Dubai was an event that came to Sri Lanka Tourism at the eleventh hour. We have created tourism, trade, and investment opportunities at the Expo, which we are sure will generate great growth avenues for Sri Lanka,” Fernando highlighted. The Sunday Morning Business this week took the opportunity to speak with stakeholders of these sectors who are attending the Expo 2020 Dubai. Sri Lanka Pavilion The dedicated Sri Lanka Pavilion will be located in the “Opportunity” district which consists of a 212 sq m of exhibit area on the ground floor and 172 sq m of office space on the first floor. A unique water-based theme designed by a team from the University of Moratuwa will be displayed in a touristic perspective, bringing out the three positioning pillars of “Authenticity”, “Compactness”, and “Diversity”. With the inclusion of heritage, history, local style, and the latest technology, the entire experience is designed to be personal, immersive, and memorable in order to showcase the authenticity of the island’s warm, sunny personality and exotic character to all 25 million and more expected visitors during its six-month run, it is learnt. The pavilion will be segmented into zones to represent the many diverse sectors of Sri Lanka. For example, Zone 1 will display a cross-section of Sri Lanka’s multiple dimensions; Zone 2 will focus on the island’s unique ecology, biodiversity, and ecosystems; Zone 3 will give participants an insight into the island’s awe-inspiring history with a display based on the island’s ancient kingdoms; Zone 4 is dedicated to economy and trade development; and Zone 5 will showcase local craftsmen and artisans with a masked wall and retail area. “This will give participants a glimpse of island life in all its splendour, helping create interest that will attract both visitors and investors,” the statement released by Sri Lanka Tourism mentioned. Accordingly, the Sri Lanka Pavilion will feature a wide variety of product sectors, including wellness tourism, handloom, apparel, handicrafts, spices and concentrates, gems and jewellery, ICT/BPO, ship and boat building, etc., thereby enabling a plethora of trade and industries to benefit from the Expo. National Chamber of Exporters Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, National Chamber of Exporters of Sri Lanka (NCE) Secretary General and CEO Shiham Marikar stated that the Chamber will exclusively cover almost all production/service sectors of Sri Lanka, including 75 to 100 stalls during the proposed dates of fours days from 17 February 2022 to 22 February 2022. “The four-day event will be 100% organised by the Chamber. The dates include Friday and Saturday, which is the weekend in the UAE, and during the same time, Gulfood Manufacturing will also be happening. Hence, we are expecting many business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) visitors at our stalls,” he said. Explaining further, Marikar elaborated that there are three main objectives of attending the event, firstly to showcase Sri Lankan products and service exporters to create awareness among international buyers, secondly to facilitate buyer-seller interaction and negotiations in order to establish partnerships, and thirdly to attach the attention of international media and other promotional bodies regarding the offerings of Sri Lanka to the international markets. He also mentioned that NCE is currently taking all measures to facilitate the exporters attending the Expo. For example, NEC is co-ordinating with a local banking partner to assist potential exhibitors with very low-interest finance schemes to ease the cash flow problem and also with a logistic partner to support exhibitors with packaging, door-to-door service, etc. When inquired what the contingency plan will be, if Covid-19 has a negative impact on restricting travel, Marikar added that there are ongoing negotiations with regard to resolving such issues. “Exporters did not have the opportunity to travel overseas for one-and-a-half years. Therefore, this event will provide a platform as this is not just an exhibition to get into the Dubai market, but we are talking about an international arena here, targeting both B2B and B2C segments,” he concluded. Colombo Port City CHEC Colombo Port City too is expected to showcase the Port City at Expo 2020 Dubai in anticipation of attracting investments and dispelling misconceptions. Yamuna Jayaratne, Director Sales and Marketing of CHEC Port City Colombo (Pvt) Ltd. stated, “We have identified the Middle Eastern region to be a key region that has the capacity and the appetite to explore investment into Sri Lanka and Port City Colombo. We believe our presence at the Dubai Expo will generate awareness and interest in the project,” indicating that the Sri Lanka Pavillion at the Expo would be a platform as Sri Lanka Port City Special Economic Zone (SEZ) is placed to serve the region as a hub for services. Jayaratne further said that the impact on footfall would be challenged due to Covid concerns when inviting investors might affect the potential investors, however, she highlighted that Sri Lanka is already a much sought after destination for services as our cost of doing business is almost 80% to 70% less than most established hubs and 30% to 20% less than emerging hubs. Sri Lanka was also placed at 23rd place in Kearney’s best outsourcing destinations.   Export Development Board The Export Development Board of Sri Lanka (EDB) will be placed at the retail corner of the Pavilion, under which potential exporters will be operating within the time duration of six months. Speaking to us, an EDB Representative for Dubai Expo 2020, who wished to remain anonymous, stated that the primary expectation of participating at the Expo is to increase the exporters’ reach for potential international buyers with the aim of expanding the export reach and to increase revenue. “Our prime objective is to see export revenue increase in the future. We have not chosen big companies, but rather chosen exporters with the potential of expanding, given the uniqueness of the products/services,” the representative highlighted. Commenting further, the EDB representative added that each company can have three representatives at the venue. However, if there is an obstacle due to the Covid-19 pandemic or any other emergency, the company will be able to send another person from Sri Lanka or can have a dedicated UAE representative attending on behalf of them as a backup plan. Meanwhile, with reference to the EDB website, it states that Expo 2020 Dubai will contribute to achieving the Sri Lanka Vision 2025 by supporting the growth of tourism, stimulating the development of innovative businesses and enhancing the country’s international reputation as a location to do business. “The Expo 2020 Dubai will enhance (the) country’s image, showcase Sri Lanka’s quality offer which will help increase market share, business, and add exposure to our companies on emerging trends in technology. It will offer opportunities for negotiation on technology transfers, FDI (doreign direct investment) discussions and resultant inflows, etc,” the EDB website added. Sri Lanka Tea Board Speaking to The Sunday Morning Business, Sri Lanka Tea Board Director of Promotion Pavithri Peiris highlighted that the tea sector will have a dedicated allocation at the Pavilion, which will be operating for six months with an aim to display the uniqueness of Ceylon Tea. Explaining the procedure, Peiris stated that the first two months will be operated by the Tea Board, and then seven different brands operating in Sri Lanka – including Jafferjee Brothers, Akbar Tea, Dilmah Ceylon Tea Company, and Imperial Tea Exports – will be given the opportunity to promote their brand for a period of two weeks. “Our expectation is to promote Ceylon Tea in the global arena and to give companies the chance to promote and position their brand, whilst also attracting new importers. We hope to create new marketing linkages for exporters and increase promotion and awareness at the Expo,” she said. Adding further, she mentioned that the Tea Board is currently in negotiations with relevant stakeholders to parallelly organise a tea evening session during the month of February 2022, with an aim of inviting all potential importers and visitors from all other countries to increase the awareness of Ceylon Tea. Meanwhile, a cup of tea will be served for all visitors and giveaways will take place during the Expo. National Gem and Jewellery Authority The National Gem and Jewellery Authority (NGJA) has also confirmed its participation for a period of six months at Expo 2020 Dubai, the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) said. Speaking to us, Gem and Jewellery Authority Representative for Expo 2020 Dubai, who wished to remain anonymous, stated that they have allocated 32 days for gems and jewellery to be displayed, especially for unique Sri Lankan stones such as sapphire, with an aim of increasing awareness of Sri Lankan jewels. “The exhibition expects nearly 20 million visitors, so this will be a great opportunity for Sri Lankan exporters, as they did not have the facility to connect with new customers physically as international travel was limited due to the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic. However, we expect to showcase our unique products in order to attract new customers, create awareness, etc.,” the representative stated. Retail Corner Sharing information on Retail Corner participants confirmed via SLTPB, an official SLTPB responded to an email query by The Sunday Morning Business stating that as of yet, seven companies have confirmed their participation. The companies are as follows Malwatte Valley Plantations PLC, Siddhalepa Export Private Limited, Tradlanka Agricultural Enterprises (Pvt.) Ltd., Thiwastra, Kanchana Handicrafts, Macksons Paint Industries (Pvt.) Ltd., and CDDEF Exports (Pvt.) Ltd. Speaking to us, Tradlanka Agricultural Enterprises Managing Director (MD) Prasad Vithanage stated that the company is expecting to gain and expand the opportunity of new potential buyers by participating in the upcoming international event. “We are aiming to create awareness and gain new buyers for essential products, such as red rice, which is already prominent in the UAE,” Vithanage said. Expressing a similar goal, a representative of Kanchana Handicrafts, who wished to remain anonymous, shared that they are also aiming to increase awareness on the quality of Sri Lankan batik to all the visitors at the Expo, whilst also reaching out to potential new buyers from the UAE as well as other countries. Additionally, responding to an email query sent by us, Malwatte Valley Plantations Executive Director Christopher Fernando stated that they will be promoting the spice and herb range which will consist of over 50 different varieties at Expo. “We would make use of this opportunity to retail our spices at the Expo, so that the citizens of Dubai will have a moment to taste the authentic flavours of Sri Lanka. We are confident this will open the door for future growth in online sales for our company,” Fernando said. According to him, the company is in the process of sending out invitations to prospective buyers to visit their stalls between 10 November 2021 and 5 December 2021. “With the ongoing pandemic, we feel that overseas visitors would be a limiting factor, but we would make use of the opportunity granted to promote authentic Ceylon spices to the Middle East,” he added. Unfortunately, all our attempts to reach the remaining Retail Corner participants proved futile. Conclusion Sri Lanka Tourism optimistically stated that Expo 2020 Dubai provides an extraordinary opportunity for many organisations that make up the local contingent, including commercial opportunities that will enable a more robust and strengthened local economy. “With over 190 countries participating in the event, there will be a wealth of interest in Sri Lanka’s unique arts, crafts, cuisine, and culture. Destination Sri Lanka will be telling its story through the creative use of song, dance, cultural events, and a host of strategically targeted programmes,” Sri Lanka Tourism added. To date, Sri Lanka Tourism has partnered with the Sri Lanka Embassy in the UAE, the Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Dubai, NGJA, EDB, Sri Lanka Tea Board, Laksala, Board of Investment of Sri Lanka (BOI), Port City Colombo, SriLankan Airlines, and the NCE. However, attempts to reach Laksala, and SriLankan Airline proved futile. The BOI was not able to give a comment at the time the paper went into print.