Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the African Union (AU), Nirmala Paranavitana, has presented her Letters of Credence to African Union Commission Chairperson Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, becoming the first Sri Lankan woman to serve as the country’s Permanent Representative to the AU.

According to the Sri Lankan Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the presentation was followed by discussions on strengthening relations between Sri Lanka and the African Union through enhanced South–South cooperation.

During the meeting, Ambassador Paranavitana proposed establishing a comprehensive AU–Sri Lanka Partnership Framework, supported by a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to identify priority areas and facilitate practical cooperation programmes.

The AU Commission Chairperson welcomed the proposal and expressed interest in pursuing an MoU and identifying opportunities for joint programmes and institutional partnerships.

The discussions focused on potential cooperation in agriculture and food security, youth empowerment, digitalisation, healthcare, technical and vocational education, climate resilience, water resource management and the Blue Economy.

Opportunities for technology transfer, entrepreneurship, investment, knowledge exchange and capacity-building were also explored.

Ambassador Paranavitana highlighted Sri Lanka’s willingness to share its expertise in agriculture, technology, water resource management and post-conflict reconciliation.

She also expressed interest in promoting agricultural research partnerships, digital innovation, youth entrepreneurship and stronger regional value chains between South Asian and African institutions.

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening institutional ties and developing practical initiatives aligned with Africa’s development priorities and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.

Ambassador Paranavitana is a diplomat and scholar specialising in international law, security studies and transitional justice.

She was selected as a United Nations Law Fellow at The Hague Academy of International Law in 2024 and has previously served in New York, New Delhi, Myanmar, Tokyo and Sweden.

She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Delhi and an MPhil from the Australian National University. (Newswire)

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