The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) held its annual Christmas get-together for its members on December 13, 2011 at Westminster House – the residence of H.E. John Rankin, British High Commissioner.

This evening of community carols organized by the CBB for its members, non-members, family and friends, was accompanied by the Merry An Singers and also featured performances by Mrs. Dinali David and Mr. Andre David. The programme consisted of members and family reading some Christmas selections for the enjoyment of those present.

Mr. Nick Nicolaou, CEO, HSBC for Sri Lanka & Maldives and Chairman of the CBB was master of ceremonies.

The Christmas eats were sponsored by Hilton Colombo Residence.

Proceeds from this event will be used for the CBB/English Language Teacher Training Programme (CBB/ELT), a project aimed at giving English language training for teachers in rural areas.

The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) hosted its 11th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Monday, 12 July, 2011 at the British High Commission in Colombo. His Excellency John Rankin – British High Commissioner was the Chief Guest.

Welcoming guests to the event, Chairman CBB, Mr. Nick Nicolaou said, "As you can see from the Annual Report, the Council is in excellent health with an increase in members from 139 to 151 during the year. We were also able to generate surplus funds of Rs. 775k which has allowed us to carry out our responsibilities as well as make significant contributions to our CSR project – the English Language Teaching Programme. We continued with a programme of events during the year, which included Luncheon Meetings, special events, sporting and social activities. The theme was to present opportunities to members to gain a better understanding of economic sectors of prominence and how they could exploit them."

Mr. Nick Nicolaou, Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Sri Lanka and Maldives, was re elected as the Chairman of the Council for the year 2011/2012.

Mr. Shirendra Lawrence, Managing Director, MAS Active (Pvt.) Ltd. was elected as the Vice Chairman of the Council. Meanwhile, Mr. James Yamanaka, Managing Director and CEO, Ceylon Tobacco Company PLC and Mr. Mohammed Ziauddin, Managing Director, Norfolk Foods (Pvt.) Ltd. were elected as the Hony. Secretary and Hony. Treasurer, respectively.

The following were appointed as Committee Members for the year 2011/2012:

• Mr. Romesh David, President, Transportation & IT, John Keells Holdings PLC.
• Mr. Shah Rouf , MD, Aviva NDB Insurance PLC
• Mr. Sarath Ganegoda, Director Hayleys PLC
• Mr. Manesh Fernando, General Manager, Hilton Residence Colombo
• Ms. Janet Ford, Head of UK Trade and Investment, British High Commission, Colombo
• Mr. Tony Reilly , Director, British Council, Sri Lanka
• Mr. Asoka Hettigoda, President, National Chamber of Commerce
• Mr. Anil Wijesinghe, Chairman/Managing Director, AWS Institute of Education (Immediate Past Chairman, CBB)

The Ceylon Chamber of Commerce provides Secretarial services to the Council for Business with Britain.

The much anticipated annual CBB sports day ended successfully with several member companies showcasing their sporting abilities at the P. Sara Stadium (Oval) in Colombo on Saturday, 25 June 2011.

MAS Slimline A (34/1 in 2.3 over's) emerged champions in the cricket tournament beating MAS Slimline B (33/ all out in 5.0 over's) by 4 wickets, while Commercial Bank emerged Champs in Netball beating Quantum Clothing 13/4. The Badminton Championship trophy was awarded to MAS Holdings who remained unbeaten during the league stage of the tournament and winning the final 4 games to 1 against HSBC.

The annual sports day is a combination of fun and goodwill. As proceeds from the event are donated towards the English Language Teacher Training project (CBB- ELT), aimed at building the capacity of local English teachers in rural parts of Sri Lanka. The CBB –ELT project is supported by the British Council in association with the National Institute of Education, the Ministry of Education and the University of Cambridge.

The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) was formed in 2000 and exists to promote two-way trade between Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom and to maintain and foster a harmonious business relationship between Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom. The CBB has a membership of 140 companies and is headed by a committee consisting of Sri lankan and British nationals with the British High Commissioner in Sri Lanka as its Patron. The CBB is affiliated to the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce.

HSBC was the principal sponsor of the event for the sixth year, while co- sponsors included Aviva NDB Insurance, Etisalat Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, Hayleys PLC, John Keells Logistics Lanka (Pvt) Ltd, Macwoods Limited, Norfolk Foods (Pvt) Ltd. and Healthcare sponsor Lanka Hospitals.

The Council for Business with Britain organized a breakfast meeting with the new British High Commissioner, His Excellency Mr. John Rankin on Thursday June 02, 2011 at the Hilton Colombo Residence. The aim of the meeting was to offer members an opportunity to meet with the High Commissioner to establish contacts by introducing themselves and their company products and services and also to share views for further development of trade between Sri Lanka and UK.

Addressing the gathering with the theme: Growth Through International Trade and Investment, His Excellency Mr. Rankin said, "I am delighted and honoured to be appointed as High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, The United Kingdom and Sri Lanka have close and long-standing links, and I look forward to furthering the partnership between our two countries." He went on to say: "the UK is very much open to investment from Sri Lanka and to partnership between UK and Sri Lankan companies. The British High Commission remains committed to providing assistance to Sri Lankan companies wanting to do business in the UK, and we will always be keen to put CBB members in touch with UK companies interested in setting up a partnership".

The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) held its annual English Teacher Training Project awards ceremony on Wednesday 4 May 2011 at the British Council, Colombo, to present the University of Cambridge Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT) certificates to 153 English Language teachers from across the country. The ceremony is the yearly culmination of the CBB's corporate social responsibility initiative, an in-service teacher training programme for English Language Teachers carried out in association with the Ministry of Education.

A non-profit, non-political organisation focused on expanding bilateral trade links between Sri Lanka and the UK, the CBB pursues mutually beneficial business relationships for Sri Lanka and the UK. It organises regular events to help the business communities from these two countries come together. The project was designed and is being managed by the British Council with HSBC as the Principal Sponsor and MAS Holdings as the Co Sponsor.

Certificates were handed over by the Guest of Honour, Minister of Education, Hon. Min. Bandula Gunawardena, and other dignitaries including, H.E. John Rankin, High Commissioner, British High Commission, Tony Reilly OBE, Country Director of the British Council Sri Lanka, Mohammed Ziauddin, Chairman, ELT sub-committee of CBB and Shirendra Lawrence, Vice Chairman of the CBB and Managing Director of MAS Active (Private) Limited.

Nick Nicolaou, Chairman of the CBB and CEO of HSBC Sri Lanka and the Maldives said "HSBC is privileged to have sponsored the CBB English Teacher Training project since 2006, which has benefited many teachers and students across the country. We envisage the programme at the end of 2012 will help 1,900,000 students and 800 teachers acquire skills and capabilities that are useful in accessing a myriad of opportunities available in today's society. This is by far the largest educational programme that the Bank has ventured into and we hope the training will pave the way for a knowledge driven society in contributing towards accelerated economic progress".

The overall goal of the programme is to upgrade the English skills of pupils and this is achieved through improving the quality of the teaching practice in their schools. The project has trained a total of 57 mentors from the Ministry of Education's Regional English Support Centres (RESCs), ensuring a wide geographical coverage across Sri Lanka. The mentors deliver in-service teacher training to teachers in their areas using a distance learning course (branded as 'the CBB English Teacher Training Project') which leads to the internationally recognised University of Cambridge Teaching Knowledge Test (TKT).

The TKT examination is comprised of three modules which focus on the core knowledge and skills needed by English teachers.

The 27 Regional English Support Centres involved in this project are in Chilaw, Bolawalana, Kegalle, Nuwara Eliya, Kahawatta, Baddegama (Galle), Ampara, Badulla, Mahiyangana, Matara, Kandy, Batticaloa, Monaragala, Polonnaruwa, Gampaha, Trincomalee, Matale, Kurunegala, Jaffna, Hatton, Hanguranketha, Ehaliyagoda, Balapitiya, Bandarawela, Anuradhapura, Hanwella and Kalutara. To date more than 400 teachers have been awarded the TKT qualification under this project.

Tony Reilly OBE, Country Director for the British Council said "The British Council is delighted to be involved in such a fine example of a private and public partnership achieving national impact. The fusion of the corporate sponsorship of the Council for Business with Britain and the state support and infrastructure of the Ministry of Education creates a synergy in the development of vital English anguage skills nationally. The British Council's vision globally is to reach millions of teachers and learners of English and provide them with access to the best resources and latest approaches to English language teaching and learning from the UK. Quality English language teaching and training is at the heart of the British Council's work around the world. It is also central to Sri Lanka's bold vision to establish itself as a regional and global knowledge hub. The CBB Project contributes greatly to the achievement of our own vision and that of the Government of Sri Lanka."

The "Sponsor a Teacher" campaign was launched by CBB over a year ago to sustain and encourage contributions towards the CBB English Teacher Training Project from more companies within and outside the CBB membership. Interested companies or individuals can sponsor an individual teacher who is participating in the project or as many teachers as they wish and may decide to select teachers who work in parts of the country with which their company has a particular link.

Shirendra Lawrence, Managing Director, MAS Active Trading (Pvt) Ltd noted that "for many years, MAS Holdings has focused its Corporate Social Responsibility activities on the areas of Education and Health. We believe that improvements in these will make a sustainable difference to both our employees as well as the communities in which we operate.  The CBB's English Teacher Training Project provides us with a tailor-made opportunity to reach deep into our rural communities and make a real difference, by developing the teaching competency of those who are in direct contact with the Youth who need the most assistance.  We have seen the tangible results that the ELT program has made over the years, and will continue to partner and look forward to supporting the same in the future as well."

The Council for Business with Britain organized a networking event on April 04, 2011 to coincide with the visit of a Trade Delegation from Northern Ireland, UK, who visited Sri Lanka from April 02 – April 05, 2011.

The aim of the event was for the 12 visiting companies from Northern Ireland to introduce themselves to a wide range of Sri Lankan companies, and to learn about the business environment and the business potential in this fast growing market.

The 12 Irish Companies that visited were: Audio processing Technology Ltd, Box Architects, BRC Partnership, Ciga Healthcare Ltd, Farrans (Construction) Ltd, Full Circle Management Solutions Ltd, global Armour Ltd, Liddel Ltd, McCloskey International Ltd, Queen's University of Belfast, Rotary Group, Rutledge Recruitment & training Ltd, Schrader Electronics Ltd, SRS Finlay and University of Ulster – International Office.

The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) concluded its annual sports triangular bringing together sportsman and women from top business entities in Sri Lanka onto one playing field. Sponsored by HSBC for the fifth year, the event took place on Saturday, 22 January, at the Singhalese Sports Club (SSC) comprising popular sports - Cricket and Netball.

The event was postponed on two occasions due to bad weather conditions, resulting in both Badminton and Table Tennis being played on separate days. While Badminton got underway on 13 November 2010, Table Tennis was played on 27 November 2010.

HSBC emerged as Champions in both Badminton and Table Tennis whilst Runners Up for Badminton was WNS Global Services and Table Tennis Runners Up were De La Rue Lanka Currency and Security Print (Pvt) Ltd.

MAS Slimline A, became unbeaten champs in Cricket, winning by 27 runs against MAS Active Linea Intimo who scored 34 to take second place as Runners-Up.

M Chathurika Mayuri of MAS Slimline A became Woman of the Tournament, while, Suresh Maduranga Perera of MAS Slimline A was adjudged Man of the Tournament respectively. The Best Batsman went to A K M Dilshad of MAS Slimline A and the Best Bowler was K P Asanka Pathirana of MAS Active Linea Intimo.

Commercial Bank emerged as winners in the Netball Tournament with 23 points, while Runners-Up, Quantum Clothing Lanka (Pvt) Ltd., edged closely behind with 20 points.

Nick Nicolaou, Chief Executive Officer of HSBC Sri Lanka and Maldives and Chairman of the Council for Business with Britain stated, "I wish to congratulate all teams who displayed competitive sportsmanship resulting in a truly enjoyable day for all members and their families. The event which has grown from strength to strength with the inclusion of many popular sports during the past few years has brought in more member participation. And the event itself has helped us increase the contribution towards our English Language Training programme for the betterment of society."

The CBB-ELT project is supported by the British Council, in association with the National Institute of Education, the Ministry of Education and the University of Cambridge. It is aimed at building the capacity of local English teachers, by reaching out to rural areas in Sri Lanka. Funds collected from the CBB sports triangular, will be donated to the English Language Teacher Training Project (CBB-ELT).

The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) was formed in 2000 and exists to promote two-way trade between Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom and to maintain and foster a harmonious business relationship between Sri Lanka and the United Kingdom. The CBB has a membership of 150 companies and is headed by a multinational committee, with the British High Commissioner in Sri Lanka as its Patron. The CBB is affiliated to the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce.

The CBB Sixes sponsored by HSBC, was co- sponsored by Aviva NDB Insurance PLC, Cathay Pacific Airways, Hilton Colombo Residence, John Keells Logistics Lanka (Pvt) Ltd and Qatar Airways. Healthcare sponsor was Lanka Hospitals and Media partners MTV & Yes FM.

The Council for Business with Britain (CBB) held its annual Christmas get-together for its members on December 13, 2010 at Westminster House – the residence of H.E. Dr. Peter Hayes, British High Commissioner.

This evening of community carols organized by the CBB for its members, non-members, family and friends, was accompanied by the British School Choir and also featured guest performances by Mrs. Dinali David and Mr. Andre David. The programme consisted of members and family reading some Christmas selections for the enjoyment of those present.

Mr. Nick Nicolaou, CEO, HSBC for Sri Lanka & Maldives and Chairman of the CBB was master of ceremonies.

The Christmas eats were sponsored by Hilton Colombo Residence.

Proceeds from this event will be used for the CBB/English Language Teacher Training Programme (CBB/ELT), a project aimed at giving English language training for teachers in rural areas.

The Council for Business with Britain organized a luncheon meeting on “Sri Lanka: Towards the US$ 4000 per Capita Income” with Mr. Ajith Nivard Cabraal, Governor, Central Bank of Sri Lanka on October 26, 2010 at 12.30p.m. at the Hilton Colombo Residence, Colombo 02.

Mr. Ajith Nivard Cabraal is the 12th Governor of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka, and chairs the Monetary Board.  He also serves as a Member of the Finance Commission, the National Economic Council and as the Chairman of the Inter Regulatory Council.  He is an Alternate Governor of the International Monetary Fund, and the current Chairman of the SAARC Governors Forum. 

We look forward to your active participation and support, in making this tournament a success.

For more details please contact the Secretariat on 5588852 or e-mail: andrea@chamber.lk

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On Saturday 28th August 2010, a group of 25 CBB Members and guests assembled at the Sri Lanka Ports Authority Project Office in Hambantota at 9:30 am to start the field trip of the area.

First stop was the SLPA Project Office to get a briefing from Mr. Nanayakkara about the overall port project by way of a scale model. We were then taken on a site visit, and it is fair to say that all participants were amazed by the scale of the project. Water is still only trickling in and dumper trucks were whizzing back and forth with sand, whilst the excavation continues. They are working 24 hours a day and expect the harbour to be filled and the first ship docked in November 2010.

Next stop after a 22km drive was to the new cricket stadium. Amazingly the turf is already laid (albeit with some wild patches in the centre) but Pakistan is scheduled to play a match there in late September 2010. Capacity will be 40,000.

Then it was back into town to see the new Convention Centre. The main structure is built and is seriously impressive - made to a Korean design and with a donation from the Korean Government. It is expected to open in April 2011 and will hold 1,500 people and have the ability to hold several smaller functions in 8 committee rooms.

Finally we went to the Hambantota Chamber of Commerce where we met up with Mr. Azmi Thassim, Director General of the Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce who showed us a comprehensive video of the Chambers activities and suggestions of how we could collaborate with them - even potentially the ELT project. The Chamber will shortly be embarking on a trade mission to the UK as guests of the Manchester CoC.

All in all a hectic, but very interesting programme with good feed back from participants, and a much better understanding of the scale and complexity of the project down south.

Many thanks to Romesh David for making the arrangements and Andrea from the CBB and Nilanthi from the Hambantota Chamber for the organiz,ation.

Hambantota Port

Hambantota Port

Suriyawewa Cricket Stadium