Cabinet approval has been granted to extend the validity period of the scheme for granting licences to Sri Lankans working abroad to import fully electric vehicles.

According to the government, Cabinet approval was given in August 2022 for the implementation of a scheme for granting licences to Sri Lankans working abroad to import fully electric vehicles on the basis of formal bank transfer of foreign remittances at the licensed bank in Sri Lanka. 

It was also decided in the Cabinet meeting held in January 2024 to extend the validity period of the scheme till June 30, 2024. 

Accordingly, the Cabinet approved the proposal presented by the President, in his capacity as the Minister of Finance, to submit the Import and Export Control Regulations No. 2 of 2024 issued under the Import and Export Control Act No. 1 of 1969 in this regard to parliament for approval. (NewsWire) 

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Suspicions have been raised over the death of a Sri Lankan youth who was employed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), it was reported. 

According to Ada Derana, relatives of the deceased, Kavindu Sathsara, have alleged that the boy had died under suspicious circumstances. 

The parents of the deceased have requested the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) to immediately focus their attention on the matter.

The deceased, who is a resident of the Gonapeenuwala area in Beddegama, had travelled to the UAE 18 months ago and had been employed as a chef at a restaurant in Abu Dhabi. 

Stating that the boy contacted his parents and friends daily, his parents revealed that, however, he had not contacted them since January 06, 2024.

Upon inquiring from the restaurant, an official had informed the parents of the boy’s demise. 

The parents have requested the SLBFE and relevant authorities to find the cause of the death and to help bring back his body to Sri Lanka. (NewsWire) 

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The new “Manusavi” Migrant Worker Loan Scheme was launched on Monday (Dec 04) together by the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL). 

Relevant loan proposal agreements were exchanged between officials of the SLBFE and the CBSL under the patronage of Minister of Labour and Foreign Employment Manusha Nanayakkara. 

According to the SLBFE, the loan can be obtained for starting or expanding a business, buying, constructing or expanding a house, buying land or a vehicle, higher education of children or any other productive purposes.

The SLBFE has allocated a sum of Rs. 5 billion to implement this loan scheme, while the maximum limit of the loan a migrant worker can obtain is Rs. 2 million, and the maximum interest rate that can be charged from the borrower is 8% with a maximum period of 36 months given to repay the money.

A migrant worker is required to maintain a separate or a joint Personal Foreign Currency Account (PFCA) or Savings Account (RSA) in a licensed commercial bank and should have remitted foreign exchange to the respective account (at least within the past three months) to be eligible for the loan scheme. 

To obtain the loan, applications can be forwarded to the respective bank before going abroad or while abroad, while the applicant can authorize a close relative through a power of attorney (POA) to receive the loan amount on their behalf.

Under the system, loans cannot be repaid in Sri Lankan Rupees (LKR), but the loan can be settled in LKR after returning to Sri Lanka upon completion of the foreign employment, to which the prevailing market interest rates will be applied.

Refinancing facilities are provided through the Regional Development Department (RDD) of the CBSL at an annual interest rate of 4% for the following licensed commercial banks that contribute to this initiative:

• Bank of Ceylon
  • People’s Bank
  • Commercial Bank
  • Hatton National Bank (HNB)
  • Sampath Bank
  • Seylan Bank
  • Cargills Bank
  • DFCC Bank
  • National Development Bank (NDB)
  • Pan Asia Bank
  • Union Bank (NewsWire)

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A Sri Lankan migrant worker in Lebanon has been featured in the ‘Flavours without Borders’ series, a cooking workshop.

Anna Fernando from Sri Lanka has hosted a cooking workshop in Lebanon where participants cook and eat food from different countries.

Displayed her culinary skills, Fernando has shared the delightfulness of Sri Lankan cuisine by teaching participants to make dishes from her home country.

Sharing her views, Fernando said each migrant worker has a talent and they should be able to display it, adding that cooking is her talent and she likes to exhibit it, especially in Lebanon. 

The workshop was hosted at an abandoned car wash that was converted into a community centre, following the 2021 Beirut blast, where culinary events are now hosted with the participation of people from different countries. (NewsWire)

Sri Lankan migrant worker Anna Fernando hosts a cooking workshop in Lebanon as part of a ‘Flavors without Borders’ series where participants cook and eat food from different countries pic.twitter.com/WtNI1t8gMr

— Reuters (@Reuters) September 21, 2023

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