The government of Myanmar and the Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF) have donated 300 tonnes of rice to Sri Lanka’s flood victims.
A ceremony to donate the rice stock was held on Saturday, 24 February at Pinlekoethwe rice mill in Dagon Seikkan Industrial Zone with the participation of the Union Minister for the Commerce Ministry Dr Than Myint and other officials, along with Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Myanmar K.W.N.D Karunaratne, and officials from the MRF, the official Global New Light of Myanmar reported Monday.
The donation is a humanitarian aid for victims of the flood and landslide in May 2017, which killed more than 200 people and rendered 600,000 homeless.
The MRF donated some 300 tonnes of rice with an estimated value of more than US$150,000, while the Myanmar government will pay the cost of shipment charges to Sri Lanka from the Yangon port
“Sri Lanka and Myanmar are engaged in cultural and religious cooperation. Sri Lanka buys rice and other agricultural products from Myanmar, and so, they are our trading clients. Therefore, we would like to express our concern to our trading partner with our contribution,” said U Ye Min Aung, general secretary of MRF.
The shipment started yesterday, and is slated to reach Sri Lanka’s port in early March. Myanmar donors will offer more donations in Sri Lanka in mid-March.
At the event, Dr Than Myint said that Sri Lanka and Myanmar were engaged in economic, social and cultural exchanges during the old days. There is business-to-business cooperation, besides a government-to-government agreement.
Bilateral trade with Sri Lanka reached $36 million, and the volume will grow each year, he added. Sri Lanka’s ambassador noted that the country imported rice from Myanmar, Thailand and India owing to a shortage of rice due to floods in the rainy season.
“I would like to express our appreciation, on behalf of the Sri Lankan people, for the humanitarian aid supported by Myanmar’s government and the MRF. We will make sure the contributions go directly and effectively to the flood victims.
Earlier, Myanmar and Sri Lanka had a series of discussions for rice exports under the government-to-government system. Sri Lanka has now allowed importers to import the goods with zero tax, and so, the plan turned out to be a business-to-business plan.
