The Ministry of Foreign Affairs intends to absorb forty recruits for foreign services, in batches by July next year, Foreign Minister Ali Sabry revealed.
His statement comes after the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Foreign Affairs disclosed that given that recruitment for foreign service has not been made since 2018, there is a deficiency in the foreign service sector.
The Parliament of Sri Lanka said the observations were made at the first meeting of the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Foreign Affairs which was held earlier in November (10) under the chairmanship of Minister Ali Sabry.
Members present at the meeting had raised concerns about the quality of the recruits of Foreign Service and the current status of the examination.
They had raised concerns that many Sri Lankans are seen on pavements near foreign embassy entrances from morning to noon. The Members were of the view that it is not a pleasant sight and therefore a proper mechanism should be established to avoid the situation. The Minister stated that discussions have been carried out regarding the matter and it will be looked into as soon as possible.
Furthermore, explaining the array of tasks performed by the Ministry, the Foreign Minister stated that apart from the daily tasks, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is also involved in looking into various concerns raised by the UNHRC and ways to domestically face such international concerns.
The Minister also stated that a lot of groundwork is being done coordinating with foreign nations given the debt restructuring process.
Minister Ali Sabry explained the nature of services provided by the Foreign Ministry and highlighted during the weekend its role in coordinating the efforts to rescue 303 Sri Lankans who were abandoned by traffickers in the middle of the sea. As well as providing consular assistance to cricketer Dhanushka Gunathilaka at the time of his arrest. Further, he highlighted the Sri Lankan High Commission in London’s role during the world tourism forum to promote Sri Lanka globally. Thus, much of the work carried out by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sometimes does not get enough publicity due to its nature, he added.
State Minister of Foreign Affairs Tharaka Balasuriya, State Ministers Lasantha Alagiyawanna, Shantha Bandara, Diana Gamage, Ashoka Priyantha, Members of Parliament (Dr.) Kavinda Jayawardhana, Sudath Manjula, Sanjeeva Edirimanna, Wasantha Yapabandara, Chandima Weerakkody, and Weerasumana Weerasinghe were present at the Committee meeting. (NewsWire)