Written by : Mu YunZhu
Yunnan Commercial Representative Office in Colombo, Sri Lanka
From March 25 to 30, 2024, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena paid an official visit to China and attended the Boao Forum for Asia 2024 Annual Conference. This is Gunawardena’s first official visit to China after taking office as Prime Minister in July 2022. It is also the first official visit by Sri Lankan leaders since President Ranil Wickremesinghe attended the third “Belt and Road” International Cooperation Summit Forum in October 2023. The visit to China again in six months highlighted the great importance that China and Sri Lanka attach to the development of bilateral relations.
During the visit, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister Gunawardena. Premier Li Qiang of the State Council and Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress Zhao Leji also met with him respectively. China and Sri Lanka also issued a joint statement and signed a number of cooperation documents on industrial investment, standardization, livelihood assistance, agriculture, media and other fields, providing new impetus for the stable and positive development of bilateral relations. Traditional friendship, political mutual trust and pragmatic cooperation are the three key points of Prime Minister Gunawardena’s visit.
In 2023, Prime Minister Gunawardena also visited Yunnan and attended the China-South Asia Exposition as the chief guest, laying the foundation for this visit to China.
In August 2023, Kunming, the capital of Yunnan Province, gradually became different. Slogans and banners of the 7th China-South Asia Expo were posted along the streets and lanes; flowers and greenery interspersed the streets with joy; the Changshui International Airport of Kunming welcomed friends from 85 countries one after another. All things were going on in a well-organized manner.
Meanwhile, at the work meeting of the Yunnan Provincial Commercial Representative Office in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Director Hu Kai emphasized that the South China Expo would be one of the most important tasks of the Representative Office in the second half of the year and all the staff members should be responsible for coordinating, assisting, and serving the arrival of Sri Lankan guests, showing the charms of Yunnan. As the host province, Yunnan must provide an in-depth experience to the guests with local characteristics.
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On August 15, a flight from Sri Lanka landed smoothly in Kunming. The old friend of Yunnan, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena, arrived and began his four-day “Yunnan Tour”.
The first stop of Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena’s “Yunnan Tour” was Kunming.
Surrounded by mountains on three sides, the “Spring City” – Kunming, has the Dianchi Lake to the south next to where the South China Expo was held. The area was becoming more crowded due to the Expo.
Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena was invited to attend the opening ceremony of the 7th China-South Asia Expo and delivered a speech. During the event, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with Premier Dinesh Gunawardena and had a pleasant conversation.
Premier Dinesh Gunawardena’s second stop in Yunnan was Dali.
When you’re in Dali for the first time, it feels like walking into an ink painting. Dali is surrounded by mountains, dotted with rice paddies and tea gardens. Leisurely Bai people wear traditional costumes and walk on the green stone road, adding more vivid sceneries to this ancient and mysterious city.
The gorgeous landscape of Dali has attracted numerous tourists. Starting from Dali Railway Station, passing through the banyan trees, drama stage, and rice fields, and arriving at the center of the Gusheng Village, the extraordinary sceneries made Premier Dinesh Gunawardena stop and appreciate the beauty.
The fertile fields stretch from the foot of Cangshan Mountain to the shore of the Erhai Lake. In front of each paddy field of Gusheng Village, there is a sign erected, on which there were detailed records of the experimental varieties, types and amounts of fertilizers applied, and other technical points. The place where Premier Dinesh Gunawardena investigated was precisely the green high-value planting test field of the research campus. Vice Chancellor of the research campus, Prof Zhoo Jin gave the first batch of hybrid rice seeds as a gift to Sri Lanka, wishing Sri Lanka a new harvest season. Premier Gunawardena also cordially invited the agricultural team to visit Sri Lanka in the future.
Lush mountains and lucid rivers, diverse ethnic groups and cultures, and an excellent ecological environment are the characteristics of Yunnan which has impressed friends from other countries. Premier Gunawardena’s trip was rewarding with fruitful outcomes. He learned about Yunnan’s deep integration of tourism, culture, and other industries, witnessed the development with constantly updating new business formats and products and experienced the lifestyle of Yunnan.