‘No reduction in Japanese assistance to SL, despite quake crisis’

Special Correspondent

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Japan has indicated that there will not be any reduction in the assistance given to Sri Lanka, although the country’s economy is going through a bad phase after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, says the new Ambassador of Sri Lanka for Japan, Admiral (Rtd.) Wasantha Karannagoda.

The damage caused by this disaster is estimated to be around US $ 300 billion, making it the most expensive natural disaster in history. Already Japan’s economy shrank more than estimated in the first quarter, however, economists also expect the economy to recover in the latter half of this year.

Admiral (Rtd.) Karannagoda took up the Ambassador post in Tokyo, Japan at a crucial time, when most foreigners were opting to leave Japan, following the calamity. Having retired as the Navy Chief of Sri Lanka, Ambassador Karannagoda has a knack for challenging the challenge that comes his way. So when he was appointed as the ambassador-designate to Japan soon after the issues in that country, he ignored the advice of friends and family to delay the assignment and headed to Tokyo - mainly to begin his career with relief efforts there. In this special interview, Ambassador Karannagoda talks about his role as a diplomat in Japan, Sri Lanka’s support for Japan at this crucial hour and how he plans to further promote bilateral relations between the two countries.

Excerpts:

Question: Thank you for this interview. To open this discussion, could you tell us a bit about your new position in the diplomatic service?

Answer: I am very happy that I was appointed as the Ambassador designate to Japan by the President Mahinda Rajapaksa. Sri Lanka is in a rapid development phase after ending the 30-year conflict two years ago. Now we are one of the safest and politically stabilised countries in the world. The New York Times also categorised Sri Lanka as a hot spot for tourism. So as the ambassador I will work towards further strengthening the bilateral relations between the two countries by promoting investments, tourism and trade activities, such as, Sri Lankan tea, gems and garments exports to Japan.

Question: Isn’t the ambassador’s position a challenge for you, since your background is totally different from diplomacy?

Answer: Yes, this field is new to me and it is a challenge. But I have been trained to take challenges, during my previous career. Also I have been associated with diplomacy throughout my life. As a military officer I got the opportunity to travel abroad and mingle with people of all walks of life. I also got the opportunity to follow courses on foreign relations and diplomacy conducted by professional diplomats at the BMICH. Therefore, I already have a good base to handle a diplomatic position on behalf of my country.

Question: You came to Japan at a time - the country is facing much difficulties - having gone through some of the major economic and social issues resulted by a natural calamity. What were your initial plans to support Japan?

Answer: Japan is the largest donor of Sri Lanka in terms of grants and soft loans for development of infrastructure, schools, hospitals etc. An economically strong Japan would be definitely beneficial for Sri Lanka. In my small way I did what was necessary at that hour. We sent a very important and a positive message to the world at a time when many media reports were giving highly exaggerated negative publicity for Japan following the nuclear issue of the Fukushima plant. That is when more than 32 embassies either closed down or shifted to Osaka due to the nuclear issue. But, I went to Japan to take up my appointment although some of my friends and relatives advised me to delay the departure, citing the nuclear threat. This was a plus point for both Japan and Sri Lanka. Soon after my arrival in Japan I went to Fukushima prefecture with the embassy staff and the members of the Sri Lankan community in Japan including the two Honorary Consul Generals of Ibaraki and Osaka Prefectures.

We took cooked rice and curry for the people in evacuation centres. This was well received by the displaced people and the others. We also visited Miyagi Prefecture, which is about 600 kms north of Tokyo, to distribute Sri Lankan tea. This was a way to show our solidarity to the people of Japan at a time of difficulty. Japan was quite appreciative of our efforts.

Question: Japan is still a top donor in Sri Lanka - providing finances and expertise to improve/develop various sectors in Sri Lanka. How do you analyse the current support? Also how do you intend further improving this relationship?

Answer: This is a very pertinent question. The damages caused by the nuclear power plants following the March 11 tsunami and the earthquake was a blow to the economy of Japan. Some of the manufacturing plants including motor car manufacturers had to stop work due to shortage of electricity and non-availability of supply of parts from factories that were located in affected areas. It was only after a month they resumed work. The damage caused by this disaster is estimated to be around US $ 300 billion. I am very happy to learn that in spite of all this loss Japan has indicated that there will not be any reduction in the assistance given to Sri Lanka.

Question: What’s the current tune of Japanese investments in Sri Lanka? And what are your plans to encourage more investments? What sort of trade activities would you encourage?

Answer: As at now the Japanese investment in Sri Lanka is around US $ 350 million with about 12,000 employments in Sri Lanka. The FDI by Japanese companies goes back to 1970s when the first investment came as a joint venture between Noritake Japan and Ceylon Ceramic Corporation in 1972. Since then the Japanese companies have invested in the fields of electronic, engineering and metal based sectors. I think we can do a lot by introducing value addition in the sectors such as rubber and rubber products. We export crape rubber. But the Japanese industrialists manufacture value added products such as tyres, carpets for vehicles, washers of various kinds etc. We could manufacture all these items in Sri Lanka and export them to Japan as value added products. Certainly we have to meet their quality standards.

Question: Japan has been a regular buyer of Sri Lankan tea? What plans do you have in promoting a tea culture between the two nations?

Answer: As at present 80 percent of the people of Japan consume green tea. This is because scientifically it has been proved that some of the properties it has help burn fat in the human body and therefore, it is considered a good health drink. Black tea is consumed by only 20 percent. Out of this 20 percent, Sri Lanka’s got a 60 percent market share. Most of the Japanese people, whom I have met so far have told me that they like black tea and Sri Lankan tea is very popular in Japan now. Black tea also has the same properties as in the green tea. We have to get this message across to the people by promoting the health benefits of black tea. At present, Japan imports a major portion of its green tea requirement from China. Sri Lanka also produces green tea. We have to find ways to promote Sri Lankan green tea in Japan as well. This is not a difficult task if our producers take a serious attitude towards producing ‘quality’ tea for the Japanese market. Japan, ‘quality’ is an extremely crucial aspect in everything.

Question: As far as other Sri Lankan exports are concerned - how do you suggest increasing trade in the future in favour of Sri Lanka? Do you plan exchange programmes of trade delegations in the near future?

Answer: Yes, we plan to have various business promotion activities. Already arrangements have been made to hold Sri Lanka/Japan business corporation committee joint meeting with their counterpart in Japan - the Tokyo Chamber of Commerce and Industry - on June 20, 2011 in Tokyo. This meeting is usually held yearly in Tokyo and in Colombo alternatively. But due to some reasons, last few years this has not been held. This year we get the support of the government of Sri Lanka to bring down a senior government official so that most of the 'red tape' issues such as taxes, legal aspects pertaining to exports/imports - can be discussed and settled then and there. Following the day one meeting, we have a 'business matching' session to promote trade between the two countries.

With the eradication of terrorism in Sri Lanka and the political stability we have, the environment in the country is very conducive for investors. We need to aggressively promote this message in Japan to lure investors. The current trade balance between the two countries is highly in favour of Japan in a ratio of 1:3. This is mainly due to imports of Japanese vehicles to Sri Lanka. To improve the trade in favour of Sri Lanka we must produce 'high quality' products that would match the standards of the Japanese market. There are many other areas that we can improve. For example, Sri Lanka exports 60 percent of Japan's black tea requirement. There is an opportunity to secure the balance 40 percent of the market as well, if our tea exporters take some interest to improve their products in terms of quality, cleanliness and aroma and the tea should come as single-estate tea.

Question: The education and cultural bonds between the two nations have grown quite strong over the years. What are your plans with regard to improving this area?

Answer: Yes. Japanese people are very interested to learn more about Theravada Buddhism. In fact religious ties between the two countries go back to 1856 where a Japanese monk had come to Sri Lanka and learned 'Pali' language in Galle. In 1989 Ven. Angarika Darmapala has come to Japan with Col. Henry Steele Olcott on a religious mission. With the late President J. R. Jayewardene's speech in support of Japan at San Francisco in 1951, the ties between the two countries have grown very strong.

The Education Ministry in Japan offers Monbukagakusho scholarships to Sri Lanka through the Japanese Embassy in Colombo and our Higher Education Ministry. A majority (90 percent) of these scholarships are given to post graduate students. They are in the fields of Electrical, Electronic, Mechanical Engineering and IT. Every year, Sri Lanka receives approximately 40 such scholarships, which include those from the ADB, JICA and the World Bank. Also there is a small number of Japanese students studying Sinhala language in our universities. Recently I met a member of Japan Sri Lanka Parliamentarian Friendship League of the ruling party of Japan (Democratic Party of Japan) who is also a member of ODA group for education in the Japanese Parliament. We discussed about possible areas of improvements in cooperation in the field of Education and Culture. He expressed his desire to promote Japanese students to learn English language in Sri Lanka. This is one area we could develop and we are working on it.

Question: How do you look at improving the tourism sector? Japanese are already coming to the Maldives in big numbers.

Answer: What I have noticed during the time I have spent in Japan is that we do not seem to market our products aggressively here. Many other countries do. There is lot of room for improvement in the sectors such as tourism, tea and gems. We should encourage our manufacturers to participate in trade fairs organized by the Japanese government and the business community in Japan to showcase our products and services. At present, many Japanese tourists are going to the Maldives. Basically they should have been our clients. They would have come to Sri Lanka if not for the 30-year conflict in our country. We must win them back. Japanese people have lot of respect for Sri Lanka. Therefore it is not difficult to win them back. We should commit ourselves to achieve this goal.