Udayanga Weeratunga

Monday February 2nd, 2015in Uncategorized 0 Comments 6 Likes

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Saturday January 31st, 2015in Receptions 0 Comments 0 Likes

Why Invest in Sri Lanka

“Invest in Sri Lanka?”at a seminar held in Moscow with Mr. Asanga Seneviratne
31 January 2015

Sri Lanka Ambassador in Russian Federation Udayanga Weeratunga with Mr. Asanga Seneviratne, founder of Anilana Hotels & Properties Limited was the keynote speaker at a seminar held in Moscow at hotel the 31 January 2015. Around 100 senior business executives, government representatives, and media representatives participated at this event, providing a unique opportunity to learn about the particularities of the Sri Lanka market. The theme of the seminar was “Why Invest in Sri Lanka”.
Without any doubt, Sri Lanka and Russia are different countries with different cultures, traditions, needs, market regulations and business environment. Despite the diversities, there has always been a close connection between our country and Russian Federation. Our recent political and economic development shows that Sri Lanka is one of the potential destinations for worldwide investors. The objective of this seminar was to help Russian investors adapt to the competitive environment by relocating their investments to low-cost Sri Lanka.

At this seminar, A few investment projects were also brought to the notice by Ambassador Weeratunga. Russian Investors received complete market information about Sri Lanka and additional details about the Kankasanthurai Cement Factory and Hambantota International Port & airport

Ambassador Weeratunga further stated “There are several investment opportunities especially for infrastructure development in the north east region. Through the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka Mission in Russia is ready to provide any assistance and support. During the question and answer session, questions were raised by the participants which is clearly highlighted that the enthusiasm of Russian investors to do business with Sri Lanka.

Asanga Seneviratne Managing Director
Mr. Asanga Seneviratne is the founder of Anilana Hotels & Properties Limited, spearheading the launch of the “Anilana” brand, which he owns. He is also a Non-Executive Director of Nation Lanka Finance PLC. Mr. Seneviratne was previously a director of Taru Villas Holdings (Pvt) Limited where he was instrumental in developing the hotel chain of Taru Villas, as well as being a Director and Chief Executive Officer of Asia Capital PLC, a public quoted Company on the Colombo Stock Exchange (since 1994). Mr. Seneviratne was previously Managing Director of Asia Securities (Pvt) Ltd, and Chief Executive Officer of Asia Capital Ltd. He has also served as Chairman of the Stock Brokers Association of Sri Lanka (2005/2006), and is currently a Director of the Colombo Stock Exchange.
Mr. Seneviratne pioneered on-line trading in Sri Lanka through investor Access Asia (Pvt) Ltd with CDAX, the first on-line trading system in Sri Lanka, enabling direct access to the Colombo Stock Exchange for the first time, directly from the clients’ personal computer. He has been involved in key capital market and private investment deals that have taken place in Sri Lanka over the last 20 years, promoting many Direct Investments in Sri Lanka from large Foreign Institutions such as Credit Agricole-Indosuez W.I.Carr, Regent Fund Management, Auerbach Grayson & Company. As well as high net-worth individuals such as Dr. Sena Yaddehige and S.K. Tiog (Malaysia). He has been instrumental in promoting many investor conferences in Sri Lanka.
With more than 20 years of extensive finance and investment experience with Asia Securities and Asia Capital, together with his experience within the hospitality industry, Mr. Seneviratne is well equipped to lead the emerging Anilana Group of Companies and successfully achieve their progressive business and expansion stratergies, building a new and profitable brand which is quality driven.

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Wednesday January 28th, 2015in Receptions 0 Comments 0 Likes

Farewell reception for Ambassador

Farewell reception for Ambassador H.E Udayanga Weeratunga
The Embassy of Sri Lanka in Moscow held a special farewell reception for Ambassador Weeratunga, which are leaving the Embassy after 9 years of service, in a warm atmosphere of New Year. The Ambassador of Sri Lanka H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga had a speech to thank all diplomats for their committed and diligent work for developing and strengthen relationships between Russia and Sri Lanka. The Ambassador resumed all the results of from 2006 to 2015 with a review of hard work of the Embassy. Ambassador’s Residence was put together all Embassy staff and SriLankan Airline staff, friends. In their personal speeches in return, all respected diplomats expressed their gratitude for support, assistance in Russia. Great appreciation was expressed to the Ambassador of Sri Lanka Udayanga Weeratunga and Madam Uma Weeratunga not only for support in their work. Special dinner followed then. Songs were singing at the Residence until the midnight accompanying the national Sri Lankan drums from the private collection of the Ambassador.

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Monday January 19th, 2015in Workshop 0 Comments 0 Likes

Workshop with Natalie Tours

Workshop for Natalie Tour agency’s network
Workshop for Natalie Tours agency’s network with participation of Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of DSR Sri Lanka H.E. Udayanga Weeratunga took place on 19th January, 2015 at the conference hall of Hotel. All agencies of Natalie Tours have come to that hall to meet H.E. the Ambassador, got some news about Sri Lanka, ask questions about the way of selling Sri Lanka, what recommend to their tourists and what to inform them about the country. During 1.5 hours Ambassador Weeratunga shared his experience and impressions about Sri Lanka, its culture and traditions, history and sights, as well as told some interesting stories about tourists and gave advises to the young managers. Special attention was given to visa formalities as the passport validity for tourists had been extended for 6 month. The Ambassador mentioned that Russian and Ukrainian tourists are still the most welcome guests for Sri Lankan hoteliers. All participants got Randy Tea and posters with Sri Lanka views of flora and fauna.
Workshop with Natalie Tours opens the seasonal workshop session about Sri Lanka.

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Tuesday November 18th, 2014in Meeting 0 Comments 0 Likes

National Assembly of Belarus

A high‐level parliamentary delegation from the National Assembly of Belarus
18 — 22 November 2014

A high‐level parliamentary delegation from the National Assembly of Belarus, led by the Chairman of the House of Representatives Mr. Vladimir Andreichenko, called on President Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees. (20 Nov.2014)
The discussion focused considerably on trade relations, including the expansion of markets for export products from both countries. This included Sri Lanka’s Fisheries sector. “We have a market for your goods,” Mr. Andreichenko said. Responding positively to President Rajapaksa, Mr. Andreichenko said that Belarus was quite happy to increase the volume of fisheries products exported from Sri Lanka, not only into their own country but also to neighbouring countries with which Belarus has customs union arrangements. While indicating that the entire delegation was impressed by the level of development it has seen in Sri Lanka, Mr. Andreichenko said what was even more apparent was the peace and happiness that prevails among the people.“Our Government and our people fondly remember your visit,” Mr. Andreichenko told the President, adding that the two countries share strong relations in sectors such as health and education. President Rajapaksa also wanted greater collaborations in the area of arts and culture and requested the Belarusian delegation to send their renowned ballet troupe to perform in Sri Lanka. The delegation from Belarus also included the Deputy Minister of Industry Mr. Gennady Sviderskiy and President of the Belarus – Sri Lanka Parliamentary Friendship Association Mr. Igor Marzuliuk, among several other officials. Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris, Member of Parliament Mr. Roshan Ranasinghe, Additional Secretary to the Ministry of External Affairs Mrs. Chitrangane, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Russia H.E Mr. Udayanga Weeratunga were also present.
International Media Unit—Presidential Secretariat

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Friday October 17th, 2014in Farewell 0 Comments 0 Likes

Farewell to Second Secretary

Farewell to Second Secretary Mr. Nuwan Ratnayake
17th October 2014
After a successful tenure Mr. Nuwan Ratnayake, returned to Sri Lanka and as a symbol of appreciation H.E the Ambassador hosted a farewell reception at his residence with the participation of the Embassy staff members. Mr. Ratnayake were warmly welcomed by the Ambassador and expressed his appreciation to all the efforts offered for the betterment of the Bilateral Diplomatic Relations as well as other functions of this Mission.
Defense Advisor, Group Captain Ravindra , Mr. Janaka Hamangama and Anna Korolkova congratulated Second Secretary and expressed their appreciation for the support Mr. Ratnayake extended in all activities and tasks. Mr. Nuwan Ratnayake briefly mentioned the times past in Russia at this Mission and thanked the past and present staff members, especially H.E. the Ambassador for the assistance and guidance extended to make the tenure in Russia a successful one.

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Sunday October 12th, 2014in Vacation 0 Comments 0 Likes

France on a short vacation

France on a short vacation
October 12th, 2014

France, in Western Europe, encompasses medieval cities, alpine villages and Mediterranean beaches. Paris, its capital, is famed for its fashion houses, classical art museums including the Louvre and monuments like the Eiffel Tower. The country is also renowned for its wines and sophisticated cuisine. Lascaux’s ancient cave drawings, Lyon’s Roman theater and the vast Palace of Versailles attest to its rich history.

For more than two decades, France has reigned as the world’s most popular tourist destination, receiving 82 million foreign tourists annual. Travelers from all over the world are drawn to France’s sophisticated culture, exquisite cuisine, fine wines, romantic chateaux and picturesque countryside. Many people immediately picture Paris when they think of France. Whilst the country’s capital is a beautiful city filled with neoclassical architecture and some of the country’s most recognizable monuments (think the Eiffel Tower), there’s a lot more to see around the country than just one city. Try the D-Day landing beaches in Normandy on for size or the Germanic culture in the Alsace region. Visit the Loire Valley for castles and vineyards, or Brittany for its earthy Celtic culture. For more wine, there’s the globally renowned Bordeaux region – famous for you know what. There are the French Alps, with Europe’s highest peak Mont Blanc to visit. In the south, there’s the endless charm of the French Riviera, including Saint-Tropez. There’s a lot to fit in, but here are the best places to visit in France.

Attracting more than 45 million visitors annually, Paris is the world’s most popular tourist destination. Dubbed various nicknames like the City of Lights, City of Love and Capital of Fashion, Paris is the capital city of France, known for its romantic ambiance and command in industries like business, entertainment, gastronomy, fashion and art and culture. In addition to iconic landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris is also home to some of the world’s finest museums that include the Louvre Museum and Musee d’Orsay.

A popular tourist destination, the Loire Valley is a region in the center of France, regarded for its spectacular scenery, splendid chateaux, picturesque vineyards and historic villages. The Loire Valley stretches 280 km (175 miles) along the Loire River, twisting and turning through some of France’s most beautiful villages and charming chateaux. Some of the most famous chateaux include Chambord, Amboise, Rivau, Chinon and Chenonceau. The valley is home to many wineries that offer tours and wine tastings.

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Saturday October 11th, 2014in Vacation 0 Comments 0 Likes

Disneyland Paris

Disneyland Paris, originally Euro Disney Resort

11.10.2014

You need to dream, if you can dream of a dream. Walt Disney’s story was that it was true. From a small child, we were also given the opportunity to see Disneyland in France, where my daughter and son are very fond of.

Disneyland Paris, originally Euro Disney Resort, is an entertainment resort in Marne-la-Vallée, France, a new town located 32 km (20 mi) east of the centre of Paris. It encompasses two theme parks, many resort hotels, a shopping, dining, and entertainment complex, and a golf course, in addition to several additional recreational and entertainment venues. Disneyland Park is the original theme park of the complex, opening with the resort on 12 April 1992. A second theme park, Walt Disney Studios Park, opened in 2002. Disneyland Paris celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2017. In 25 years, 320 million people visited Disneyland Paris. The resort is the second Disney park to open outside the United States following the opening of the Tokyo Disney Resort in 1983.

“To all who come to this happy place, welcome! Once upon a time, a master storyteller, Walt Disney, inspired by Europe’s best loved tales, used his own special gifts to share them with the world. He envisioned a Magic Kingdom where these stories would come to life, and called it Disneyland. Now his dream returns to the land that inspired it. Euro Disneyland is dedicated to the young and the young at heart, with the hope that it will be a source of joy and inspiration for all the world.” — Michael D. Eisner, April 1, 1992

Disneyland Paris consists of two parks, Disneyland Park and Walt Disney Studios Park, and a shopping district, Disney Village. Disneyland Park is the park everybody has heard of and expects, and Walt Disney Studios Park has a more general movie making theme – but it’s still very Disney. The Village is comprised of stores and restaurants. Disney’s theme parks are famous for their “Audio-Animatronics,” attention to detail, service mentality, crowds,and high prices. The intention is to completely recreate the “magic” of the Disney franchise; employees are not “staff” but “cast members”; the park is kept insanely clean; and everywhere you will find a perfectly running machine. For example, you won’t find the same Disney character twice within sight – there are no duplicates. Children are clearly the focus of Disneyland, but older visitors are not neglected either.

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Friday October 10th, 2014in Meeting 0 Comments 0 Likes

Visit the Minister of Plantation

Official Visit the Minister of Plantation Hon. Mahinda Samarasinghe
10th October 2014
A meeting was held at the Minister of Agricultural in Russian Federation in Ministry of Agricultural on 10 October 2014 in honour of the visiting Hon. Mahinda Samarasinghe, Minister of Plantation Industries of Sri Lanka and delegation to Russian Federation. The major challenge confronting SriLanka tea industry today is to retain its preferred production targets and maintain the quality which issynonymous with “Ceylon Tea”. With regard to production targets, its share in the Russian market, percentagewise it has declined over the last 2 years to almost half of its originalshare. This has been due to aggressive competition from other tea producing countries and the very low rate o replanting and equally low productivity and the high production cost and the absence of an aggressive marketing cum promotional strategy of Ceylon Tea, said Hon. Minister Samarasinghe addressing the gathering at a meeting by Minister of Agricultural in Russia. He further said, “Our policy is to ensure that a major quantity of our teas find markets in value added form. We can certainly look at what kind of incentives should be provided to the industry for this purpose. The tea sector being a vital commercial sector, the country has a right to expect a substantial contribution from this sector to government revenue to augment urgent development needs of the country, especially when we as a nation are having insurmountable challenges in the immediate aftermath of a post war situation. The Sri Lanka Tea Board will work together with Russian Companies and buyers to ensure the good name of our teas. We have taken several steps to strengthen the relation between Sri Lanka Tea Board and Russian tea sellers. The Minister also said that tea was the drink of the 21st century and it certainly had a future, but Sri Lanka had to make it competitive global economy. Also his, informed that they had fruitful discussion about the strengthening of bilateral relations between the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Plantation Industries of Sri Lanka. Also agreed to continue of the development of trade and economic cooperation in agriculture sector.

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Monday October 6th, 2014in Caravan 7 0 Comments 0 Likes

Mega Caravan 7 Completed

Mega Tourism Caravan-7 Successfully in Belarus, Moldova & Ukraine
24 September to 06 October 2014

The “Mega Tourism Caravan-7″ road show which was conducted in the Republic of Belarus, Ukraine and Republic of Moldova for three weeks concluded its journey on 06 October 2014. This epic campaign under taken by the Embassy of Sri Lanka in the Russia, under the personal supervision of the Ambassador Udayanga Weeeratunga, with the collaboration of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau was a huge success in promoting Sri Lanka Tourism and opened enormous avenues to all Sri Lankan participants to expand respective business ventures.
Further, it also facilitated to further the existing political and cultural relations between Sri Lanka – Republic of Belarus, Sri Lanka – Republic of Moldova and Sri Lanka – Ukraine as Ambassador Weeratunga very successfully managed to harness the Diplomatic Corps in both political and cultural spheres, Leading Travel and Tour Operators, High Profile Media Officials, Senior Officials of both public and private sector of both countries and most importantly the General Public. The lectures, presentations, press briefings, public addresses and interactions of the Ambassador were the major contributing factors in harnessing people of all walks of life.
Mega Tourism Caravan-1 first setup Saint Petersburg, the “Venice of the North” posed an ideal launching pad for this campaign. Promotional activities which started on 17 March 2013 were conducted for three successive days with shopping mall activation in Mega Dybenko, Sri Lankan Cultural Night and Photo Exhibition at Moscow Hotel, Workshop and one to one meetings at the Hotel Oktyabskaya and other associated activities.

Successful promotional activities conducted with the Workshop with participation of Travel and Tour Operators in the Belorus, Moldova and Ukraine was the main event. Sri Lankan Night, the cultural show dedicated to the Diplomatic Corps and shopping mall activation for the general public were also well attended and received in Minsk, Vitebsk, Gomel, Kiev & Kishinev.
Workshop’s, Reception and Sri Lankan Night to the Diplomatic Corps, Shopping Mall activation at Dream Town were the major events in Kiev, Ukraine.

After successfully completing the “Mega Tourism Caravan-7” road Show in Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova, His Excellency Udayanga Weeratunga hosted the participants for a dinner at Hotel Cordon, in which there was also a certificate presentation as a token of appreciation to all the participants. H.E the Ambassador appreciated the efforts of all the participants including the dancers and other exhibitors representating various authorities assisted to make the Roadshow a success. Maj.Gen Crishantha De Silva, Deputy Chief of Mission, Mr. Samantha Pathirana HOC Embassy, Group Captain Ravindra Liyanagamage -Defence Attache, Mr. Viranga Bandara, Junior Manager of Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Miss Anna Korolkova -General Director SriLankan Airline Moscow office and Mr. Chandana Wickramasinghe also spoke in the event.

Participation of Laksala, Siddhalepa, Leading Travel and Tour Operators of Sri Lanka and the unparalleled performances by the Dancing Guild of Maestro Chandana Wickramasinghe were the main anchors of this accomplishment. Collaboration and sponsorship of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau and the persevering and resolute leadership of His Excellency Udayanga Weeratunga duly supported by the staff enabled this mammoth campaign to become a reality and a success.

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