Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2011-11-02

H.E. the President?s visit to Perth, Australia for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) 2011 - Report to the Cabinet of Ministers by the Minister of External Affairs

- the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) was held in Perth, Australia from 28 - 30 October 2011. During the meeting, Sri Lanka led by H.E. the President was able to secure its position as the CHOGM venue for the year of 2013, amidst the campaigns against it. During the final executive session of the meeting , H.E. the President invited the Heads of State and their delegations for CHOGM 2013 to Sri Lanka, which was followed by visual presentation of the conference facilities and the variety of facets of the country. H.E. the President also participated in the Business Forum and delivered the keynote address at the session on "Indian Ocean and the Pacific Rim: Fast Growing Markets", in which he highlighted the economic growth prospects in Sri Lanka. Having 'pull-aside' meetings with the counterparts of Australia, Singapore, Mauritius, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Uganda, Zambia, Kenya, Nigeria , Malaysia and Ghana, H.E. the President was able to effectively exchange views regarding Sri Lanka's progress on post conflict reconstruction, rehabilitation, reconciliation and economic development. Meanwhile, Hon. G.L. Peiris, Minister of External Affairs has briefed the international media about the success achieved in post conflict developments in Sri Lanka. Cabinet of Ministers noted the details enumerated in the Note and congratulated H.E. the President, Hon. Minister of External Affairs and the other Members of the delegation on the achievements made in improving international relations.