Sri Lanka plays perfect host to Maldivians living there: President

President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik has praised Sri Lanka, and said that it plays perfect host to Maldivians living in Sri Lanka.

The president made this remark while speaking at a function held at Mookai Hotel to mark the 65th independence day of Sri Lanka.

He said that the number of Maldivians who travel to Sri Lanka for medical purposes is on the rise.

The president noted in his speech that the first foreign teachers that arrived in the Maldives, in order for it to adopt the English-medium education system, were from Sri Lanka. He said that this was 53 years ago and that the relations between the two countries have progressed since then.

President Waheed said that tourism in the Maldives has also benefited greatly from Sri Lanka’s experience.

Sri Lanka marks 4 February as the day it gained full independence from the British. It gained independence in 1948.

The function to mark the independence day of Sri Lanka was attended by President Dr Mohamed Waheed Hassan Manik, Home Minister Dr Mohamed Jameel Ahmed, Commissioner of Police Abdullah Riyaz and the Sri Lankan High Commissioner to the Maldives Dixon Dela.