Please join the United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung in her fourth town hall with the Sri Lankan-American Community. Ambassador Chung will discuss our longstanding partnership with Sri Lanka and her perspectives on the future of the Indo-Pacific. Ambassador Chung will be joined by Consular Chief Rafael Andrade, who will lead a 20-minute session demystifying the visa process and the work of his section. The town hall will feature a question-and-answer session; participants are encouraged to submit questions in advance. Date: Wednesday, November 20th, 2024 Time: 6.30 p.m Pacific | 9.30 p.m Eastern This event is open to the public and all are welcome but registration in advance is required. Register Now For more information contact: Achala Weerasinghe 213-483-0126 or achala@slfint.org
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On Friday, June 7, H.E Ambassador Julie Chung, the U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka, visited Staten Island, New York, accompanied by the State Department’s Senior Advisor for Outreach and Partnerships for South & Central Asia, Jennifer Miller. Ambassador Chung has served as the U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka since February 2022. During her visit to Staten Island, she visited the Sri Lankan Arts and Cultural Museum, the Sri Lanka Association, and the Buddhist and Hindu Temples. The Sri Lankan Art & Cultural Museum, located in the Stapleton neighborhood of Staten Island, is the first museum dedicated to Sri Lankan culture outside Sri Lanka. Julia Wijesinghe founded the museum to celebrate and educate visitors about Sri Lankan heritage. The museum is associated with the Lakruwana restaurant, owned by Julia’s family, which serves traditional Sri Lankan cuisine. Julia Wijesinghe stated, “It was a dream come true and a great honor to welcome
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United States Permanent Representative to the UN Food and Agriculture Agencies in Rome Ambassador Cindy McCain will visit Sri Lanka from September 25-28 to highlight U.S. food assistance programs in Sri Lanka and reinforce the U.S. commitment and lasting partnership with the island nation. The US embassy in Colombo said that in addition to meeting with senior government officials and aid organizations in Colombo, Ambassador McCain will join U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung to travel to Central Province to visit schools, agricultural research facilities, and community organizations and meet with recipients and implementers of relief provided through U.S. government-funded humanitarian assistance programs. The United States is the single largest country donor to the three United Nations food and agriculture agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the World Food Program (WFP). U.S.-funded UN projects showcase how the U.S. government, the
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USAID Administrator Samantha Power has announced an additional US$40 million in development assistance to help farmers purchase fertilizer and other vital agricultural inputs. “Subject to Congressional approval, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will invest this money to provide farmers with fertilizer and other vital agricultural inputs,” USAID said in a statement. “This critical support, implemented through the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, comes just in time for maximum benefit to the upcoming “Maha” planting season and will benefit up to one million farmers in need of fertilizer across Sri Lanka, which includes 53,000 farmers in need of emergency monetary assistance. USAID stands with the Sri Lanka’s people and is committed to providing this urgent support. The US Government will continue to explore ways to assist the country in meeting their immediate, medium, and long-term needs, and will continue ongoing efforts that boost sustainable economic growth, promote
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USAID Administrator Samantha Power said USAID will provide additional US$20 million as humanitarian aid in addition to US$40 million which will be given to procure fertilizer to assist one million farmers. The total amount pledged by her, comes up to US$ 60 million. Ms. Power said political reforms and economic reform should go hand in hand. “Sri Lanka should ensure stable borrowing and stable balance of trade,” she added. (Yohan Perera) For more information go to:http://www.dailymirror.lk
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Please join United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka Julie Chung in her second town hall with the Sri Lankan-American Community. Ambassador Chung will provide updates on the status of U.S.-Sri Lankan relations, U.S.-led relief efforts, and her perspectives on the ongoing crisis and ways forward. Ambassador Chung will be joined by Deputy Assistant Administrator for the USAID Asia Bureau Anjali Kaur, who will share USAID’s humanitarian assistance plans with the community. The town hall will also feature a question and answer session; participants are encouraged to submit questions and areas of concern they would like addressed in advance and during the event via chat. Date: Thursday, September 22, 2022 Time: 7.30am PST, 10.30am EST Pre-Register, Submit Questions, and View the Virtual Event Here:https://interactive.state.gov/sri-lanka/ Ambassador Julie Chung arrived in Colombo as the U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka in February 2022. A career member of the Senior Foreign Service with the rank
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The launching event of the electric three-wheelers converted by David Peris Motor Company was held this morning, and the MoU was signed with USAID in the presence of the US Envoy to Sri Lanka. Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera was present at the event and said, it was great to see much needed energy sector transformations taking place and hold the key for the future.
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Washington, DC – Today Congresswoman Dina Titus (NV-01), a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, led nine of her colleagues in sending a letter to Secretary of State Blinken and USAID Administrator Power urging them to take swift action to provide meaningful support to the Sri Lankan people in the face of widespread food, fuel, and medicine shortages. They also called on the Administration to continue to support the Sri Lankan government and people as they work to implement democratic and economic reforms. These reforms include advancing efforts to address longstanding issues related to accountability and reconciliation and to meet broader U.S. foreign policy goals for the region. “We remain deeply concerned by the unprecedented and disastrous economic crisis currently facing Sri Lanka,” the Members wrote. “Although we greatly appreciate the $11.75 million in new humanitarian and development assistance that USAID provided at the end of June, more is
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The visiting high-level US diplomatic delegation has assured that they will support by requesting international banks to assist Sri Lanka when issuing Letters of Credit (LC) to obtain medicines and essential commodities, President’s Media Unit said. They have also assured that the US Government will continue its support to strengthen the relationship with the International Monetary Fund at all levels. The meeting between the US State Department and the Treasury delegation and the President held at the President’s House, Colombo, today (27). President Rajapaksa commended the delegation for their visit to Sri Lanka and briefed them on the current economic and social crisis in the country. The President also briefed about the progress of the ongoing discussions with the IMF. Kelly Keiderling, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, US Department State and Robert Kaproth, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Treasury for Asia. The US Department of Treasury
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A high-level delegation representing the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the U.S. Department of State will visit Sri Lanka from June 26- 29, the U.S. Embassy in Colombo announced today. Members of the delegation include Deputy Assistant Secretary of Treasury for Asia Robert Kaproth and Ambassador Kelly Keiderling, who is also the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia. The visitors will meet with a wide range of political representatives, economists, and international organizations, the embassy said in a statement. In all their meetings, they will explore the most effective ways for the U.S. to support Sri Lankans in need, Sri Lankans working to resolve the current economic crisis, and Sri Lankans planning for a sustainable and inclusive economy for the future, the U.S. Embassy said further in its statement. “This visit underscores our ongoing commitment to the security and prosperity of the Sri Lankan people,”
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