Council for Business with Britain & Hambantota Chamber of Commerce Field Trip to Gain Information on Infrastructure & Development Work

08th October 2010, www.dailynews.lk

The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) in co-operation with the Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce (HDCC) organized a field trip to Hambantota to expose key decision-makers among their membership to the major infrastructure and other developments that are taking place in the south of the country.

The highlight of the trip was a visit to the soon to be operational Hambantota Port which was followed by visits to the sites of the Hambantota Convention Centre and the Cricket Stadium, culminating with an interactive session with the members of Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce.

The CBB members first stop was the Hambantota Sri Lanka Ports Authority Project Office and were provided a first hand report of the port project and were shown a scale model detailing the various phases of the project.

Thereafter the members were taken round the port site to experience first hand the vast scale and nature of this undertaking.

The members then visited the new cricket stadium, still under construction, but already having a laid down cricket pitch, and also the new Convention Centre funded by the Korean Govt and being built according to a Korean design.

The expected opening of this Convention Centre will be in April 2011, and will hold 1,500 people and have the ability to host several smaller functions in eight committee rooms.

Finally the members visited the Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce where they met Director General Azmi Thassim and members of the Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce.

The CBB members were shown a comprehensive video of the Chamber's activities and discussed ways that the two organizations could interact.

It was a timely visit, since the Hambantota District Chamber will shortly be embarking on a trade mission to the UK as guests of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce.

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