Message from Bryce Hutchesson, High Commissioner of Australia
26 January marks Australia Day, a day for us to reflect on what it means to be Australian.
It is a day to celebrate and engage with Australia’s rich history, including by honouring the first Australians, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples - whose continuing cultures are the oldest on earth. We celebrate our multicultural society, taking pride in the fact that we are one of the most successful diverse countries in the world. And we reaffirm our strong values of democracy, freedom and the Australian ‘fair go’ for everyone.
We are fortunate to have as a valued part of our multicultural society a significant Sri Lankan-Australian community. This diverse community of at least 170,000, and comprising all ethnicities of Sri Lanka, has made a strong contribution to Australian society. It is pleasing that an increasingly large number in the diaspora are also contributing in various ways in Sri Lanka.
Australia and Sri Lanka share a truly modern and sophisticated partnership. Much has been achieved in recent years. In 2017 we celebrated the 70th anniversary of bilateral ties, and we have not let up since then. Our cooperation covers a wide range of fields, including education, development, trade and investment, and Indian Ocean regional security
Education remains a central pillar in our relationship, with more Sri Lankans than ever before choosing to study in Australia. We continue to provide scholarships through the Australia Awards Program for Sri Lankans to study at Australian universities. Our Australia Sri Lanka Alumni Association (ASLA) now boasts more than 800 members, and we encourage all those who have studied in Australia over the years to join the network and be part of an expanding program of events (start by finding the ASLA Facebook page).
Australia is proud of our contribution to Sri Lanka’s development for more than 70 years, totalling around $1.5 billion. Our commitment is as strong as ever. We continue to work closely with the Government of Sri Lanka to pursue its economic reform objectives, including initiatives to strengthen the business environment and grow the tourism sector – including in the north and east to support peacebuilding and reconciliation efforts. We work hard to ensure that our programmes have a particular focus on women, people with a disability and the most vulnerable.
Bilateral trade and investment links continue to grow. In the most recent financial year two-way trade reached a high of over $1.5 billion. But there is much room for further growth. With economic reform and new openings business will continue to take advantage of additional opportunities, including in areas such as premium food and beverage, agribusiness, tourism, and resources and energy, among others.
Australia and Sri Lanka have built on our standing as close Indian Ocean neighbours to work together on regional security issues. We enjoy excellent cooperationon combatting illegal people smuggling. And we increasingly engage together organisations such as the Indian Ocean Rim Association and the ASEAN Regional Forum to address shared and emerging security challenges in our region. Our defence, law enforcement and other security-related links continue to grow.
New areas of cooperation continue to emerge, such as in public health, sports administration and anti-doping, agriculture, and surf life saving and water safety.
I will be leaving Sri Lanka shortly at the conclusion of my term as High Commissioner with bittersweet feelings. Bitter because I could gladly spend more time in this fabulous country, working with talented Sri Lankans, and continuing to see Sri Lanka make good on its potential. But sweet because the achievements over recent years are significant, and Australia is proud to have played a part. We look forward to taking the partnership to new heights in years to come.