UK Trade Envoy Lord Hannett on First Official Visit to Sri Lanka to Boost Trade Ties

Colombo, May 27, 2025 — The UK Prime Minister’s Trade Envoy for Sri Lanka, Lord Hannett of Everton, is currently in Colombo on his first official visit to Sri Lanka since his appointment in January 2025. The four-day visit, running from May 25 to 28, aims to strengthen economic ties and explore new opportunities to deepen trade and investment between the two countries.

During his stay, Lord Hannett will meet with key government officials including Minister of Trade, Commerce, Food Security and Cooperative Development Hon. Wasantha Samarasinghe, and Deputy Minister for Industry and Entrepreneurship Hon. Chathuranaga Abeysinghe. He is also scheduled to hold discussions with the Sri Lanka Export Development Board (EDB) to assess the trade and investment landscape and understand the opportunities and challenges faced by UK businesses in the country.

In an effort to engage with a broad range of stakeholders, Lord Hannett will also interact with senior figures from both UK and Sri Lankan business communities, women business leaders, and representatives from the Council for Business with Britain. He will also meet with UK transnational education providers, reflecting the UK’s strong presence in Sri Lanka’s education sector—Sri Lanka being the second largest market for UK transnational education.

The visit includes tours of leading UK-affiliated businesses operating in Sri Lanka, such as the London Stock Exchange Group, De La Rue, HSBC, Haleon, and MAS Silueta.

A key highlight of the visit is the launch of the SheTrades webpage on the EDB website, in collaboration with the International Trade Centre. This initiative follows the establishment of the SheTrades Sri Lanka Hub in March and aims to support women-led businesses in accessing global markets.

Ahead of his visit, Lord Hannett expressed enthusiasm about his engagements in Sri Lanka. He emphasized the UK’s commitment to enhancing trade relations and supporting UK companies entering or expanding in the Sri Lankan market. He also highlighted the importance of ongoing reforms to improve market access, ease of doing business, and transparency—critical factors in deepening bilateral trade ties.

Currently, the UK-Sri Lanka trade relationship is valued at approximately £1.6 billion, with Sri Lanka enjoying a trade surplus. The UK remains Sri Lanka’s second-largest export market.

Lord Hannett’s visit signals renewed momentum in UK-Sri Lanka relations, with both nations looking to collaborate on shared economic growth and sustainable development.