High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Canberra Visits Minerals Council of Australia

November 13, 2025

High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Canberra, Yasoja Gunasekera met Mr. Demus King, General Manager/ Trade and Investment of the Minerals Council of Australia to discuss investment by Australian companies in the minerals sector.

 

The Minerals Industry is Australia’s largest single contributor to Australia’s Gross Domestic Product (around 10%). Australia’s minerals industry is innovative, technologically advanced and environmentally and socially progressive and the Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) is the leading industry association and advocate for Australia’s minerals industry. It represents companies that generate most of Australia’s mining output such as Rio Tinto; the Broken Hill Proprietary Company Limited (BHP) and Glencore.

 

High Commissioner Gunasekera noted that Sri Lanka possesses a rich geological endowment, with high-value industrial minerals that are increasingly critical to global technology and manufacturing and the potential for international partnership in this sector is immense, driven by the global demand for critical minerals. She further noted that by strategically leveraging its unique mineral wealth through robust international cooperation and a strong focus on advanced processing, the Government of Sri Lanka hopes to transform its mineral sector into a pillar of economic recovery and future growth. Crucially, the next phase of development must focus on value addition which has the potential to increase export revenue, generate skilled local employment and strengthen the national industrial base.

 

Mr. King requested more information about approval and legislative processes in Sri Lanka to facilitate promoting potential partnerships between the two countries and highlighted that  Australian companies are actively working towards promoting environmental stewardship and technological innovation in the mining sector.