Ambassador of Sri Lanka Discusses Strengthening Local Governance and Cultural Bonds with Thai Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior
Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Thailand and Permanent Representative to the UNESCAP Wijayanthi Edirisinghe, paid a courtesy call on Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior of Thailand Anutin Charnvirakul, on 9 April 2025 at the Ministry of Interior in Bangkok.
Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya attends in 6th BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok
Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, participated in the 6th Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) Summit held in Bangkok, Thailand on 3–4 April 2025. The Summit, hosted under the theme of regional resilience and prosperity, brought together leaders of the seven BIMSTEC Member States to strengthen cooperation and chart a forward-looking agenda for the region.
Joining as a speaker at the Plenary Session on ‘Voices for Solutions to the Plastic Pollution Conundrum’ at the invitation of the UN Environment Regional Office in Bangkok, Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to UNESCAP, Ambassador (Mrs.) Samantha K. Jayasuriya pledged on Sri Lanka’s continued commitment to encourage more private public partnerships and multi-stakeholder engagements for innovative solutions for plastic pollution, including producing micro filaments for cleaning tools, yarns for apparels such as the T20 Cricket Gear, Galle Dialogue T-Shirts from plastic wastes, promoting circular economy.
Ambassador Jayasuriya attended the networking breakfast earlier in the day with Helen Ågren, Ambassador for the Ocean, Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the opening session of the Day – 4 which was graced by the H.E. Varawut Silpa-archa, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment of Thailand, who shared insights on the urgency of addressing the marine plastic pollution and explained actions by Thailand.
Further speaking at the plenary session on voices for solutions to the plastic pollution conundrum, Ambassador Jayasuriya also said Sri Lanka will take action to fully implement the 2017 policy initiative of banning selected polythene and polythene products, and to expand the ‘Beach Park Programme’ currently covering 90 kms long stretch of beaches that was assigned to families living around, to clean and handover the plastic wastes to recyclers.
SEA of Solutions 2019 showcased 29 exhibitors, where Sri Lankan researcher from the Asian Institute of Technology, Dr. Kavinda Gunasekara displayed the ongoing project on developing plastic leakage scenarios in the Mekong River basin using Geographic Information System (GIS) and Remote Sensing technologies. A short video on the story of making the official jersey for Sri Lanka Cricket T- 20 out of the recycled marine plastic wastes by MAS Holdings (Eco Spindle), and the partnership with Sri Lanka Navy was also displayed at the exhibition. Ms. Saritha Ranatunga, Second Secretary coordinated Sri Lanka’s Participation at the pledging event with the support of the Marine Plastic Prevention Authority (MEPA) of Sri Lanka and the Ocean Affairs Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Permanent Mission of Sri Lanka to the UNESCAP Bangkok
Embassy of Sri Lanka in Bangkok,Thailand.
