Australia Day on January 26 was celebrated with much caution across Australia, adhering to the Covid regulations and safety guidelines. As Australians celebrate their country being founded as a British colony in 1788, this is a special year for Sri Lanka – Australia diplomatic relations as we celebrate 75 years of togetherness.
We share a history of cooperation in trade and investment, education, sport, culture and development with a shared interest in a ‘secure and prosperous Indian Ocean region,’ according to Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). The two countries engage regularly on a wide range of issues, from cooperation on economic, security and development priorities, to human rights and reconciliation, it added.
High level visit
Throughout the years, Australia and Sri Lanka exchanged high level visits and the most recent was in December last year when the Australian Minister for Home Affairs Karen Andrews visited Sri Lanka.
People smuggling, border security and transnational crime was high on the agenda as usual and Sri Lanka pledged to continue cooperation with Australia.
The Australian Minister jointly with Minister for Irrigation and State Minister of Internal Security, Home Affairs and Disaster Management Chamal Rajapaksa inaugurated the Sri Lanka Border Risk Assessment Centre at the Department of Immigration and Emigration displaying Sri Lanka’s commitment to cooperation with Australia on border security.
In addition, Foreign Minister G. L. Peiris and the Australian Minister signed the Memorandum of Understanding of Return and Readmission of Persons between Sri Lanka and Australia. Both Ministers agreed to hold the next session of the Joint Working Group on People Smuggling and other Transnational Crime in Sri Lanka.
While measures are in place to combat transnational crime such as people smuggling, Australia is open to legal immigrants and Sri Lankans have continuously found opportunities in the boundless land.
According to DFAT, the Sri Lankan Diaspora in Australia now exceeds 130,000 people and acknowledges that the large Sri Lankan community contributes significantly to strengthening Australia’s multicultural society and economy.
They are the 12th largest ethnic group in Australia, apart from being one of the single largest groups of overseas Sri Lankan communities. They continue to benefit from Australia’s superior healthcare, wealth creation, and success in business and education.
Education
Education draws a large number of Sri Lankan students to Australia, making this a significant part of Australia’s relationship with Sri Lanka. In 2020, over 13,000 Sri Lankan students were studying in Australia, while 25 Australian education providers are active in Sri Lanka, according to DFAT. Significant opportunities also exist to increase collaboration in the technical and vocational education sector.
As a key part of the education engagement, Australia partners with Sri Lanka through the Australia Awards program in South Asia, and the country expects to welcome 32 Lankan students in 2022. Since 2014, the New Colombo Plan has awarded 934 scholarships and mobility grants for Australian undergraduates to undertake study and work-based experiences in Sri Lanka.
Migration
The Australian Migration Program is designed to achieve a range of economic and social outcomes. In 2021-22, the Migration Program will have an overall planning level of 160,000 places, consisting of several streams such as skill, family, special eligibility and child.
According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs, 79,600 places are available for skill migration which is designed to improve the productive capacity of the Australian economy and fill skill shortages in the labour market, including those in regional Australia. For family, 77,300 places are available.
This stream is predominantly made up of partner visas, enabling Australians to reunite with family members from overseas and provide them with pathways to citizenship. In Special Eligibility, 100 places are available and this stream covers visas for those in special circumstances, including permanent residents returning to Australia after a period overseas. The child stream is managed outside the Migration Program as it is demand-driven and not subject to a ceiling.
Trade and business
Australia has also become a destination for post Covid-19 business and investment migration for many in the world, apart from skill migration.
Immigration lawyer Don Susantha Katugampala said: “There’s a positive economic growth in Australia with the lowest unemployment rate compared to many other Western countries. Therefore, those from other parts of the world are looking to come to Australia to invest. The Government becomes selective in raising the bar for the business migration applicants. So it’s important to seek proper advice and then submit the application with proper documentation.”
Australia is a significant trade partner of Sri Lanka where goods and services trade between the two countries was at $1.71 billion in 2019-20, with growth driven by education services and tourism. Australia’s total investment in Sri Lanka was $105 million in 2019, and Sri Lanka’s total investment in Australia was $149 million, according to DFAT.
Significantly, the 2017 Australia-Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Framework Arrangement (TIFA) advances economic cooperation between Australia and Sri Lanka. Under TIFA, the Joint Trade and Investment Committee (JTC) strengthens our economic relationship, including facilitating market access and investment. This makes it easier for Australian and Sri Lankan businesses to trade and invest with each other, DFAT states.
Australians are also attracted to Sri Lanka due to tourism. Before the Covid pandemic, Sri Lanka was ranked the 20th most popular tourist destination for Australians, with Australia the fifth largest source of tourists to Sri Lanka. Australia supported Sri Lanka to deliver a national tourism development strategy and Australia continued to support tourism recovery and resilience in Sri Lanka since the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks.
As Australians celebrate its 234th Australia Day, Sri Lanka also has reason to celebrate as we mark a milestone anniversary with them. Several events are planned this year to further boost ties with Australia.
According to Foreign Secretary Admiral Prof. Jayanath Colombage, this is a significant year for bilateral relations with many countries and will be marked with the issuance of commemorative stamps, sporting events, high level visits, cultural events, and so on. He said, “We are proud to have achieved this many milestones with many countries and will continue strengthening relations with all in our region and beyond.”