Iranian President Dr. Ebrahim Raisi arrives in Sri Lanka

President of Iran, Dr. Ebrahim Raisi arrived in Sri Lanka on Wednesday morning (24) for a one-day visit.

He was accorded a cordial welcome by Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena at the Mattala International Airport.

At the invitation of President Ranil Wickremesinghe, the Iranian president arrived in Sri Lanka after wrapping up his three-day visit to neighbouring Pakistan. This is the first visit of an Iranian President to Sri Lanka after former President Dr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s visit in April 2008.

During his brief stay on the island nation, Dr. Raisi, together with President Ranil Wickremesinghe, will participate in a public ceremony to mark the inauguration of the Uma Oya Multipurpose Development Project (UOMDP).

The project will add 290 GWh to the national grid, while supplying water to 6,000 hectares (15,000 acres) of farmland and drinking water to thousands of families in three districts.

The ceremony, chaired by the presidents of Iran and Sri Lanka, will symbolise the co-operation between the two nations in this significant infrastructure endeavour, a statement said.

Coinciding with Dr. Raisi’s visit, Sri Lanka and Iran will sign five Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) today, in a bid to bolster the bilateral relations between the two nations.

Meanwhile, against this backdrop, Sri Lanka Police has implemented special traffic plans in Colombo and Mattala ahead of the Iranian president’s arrival. Vehicular movement will be restricted on many roads including the Colombo-Katunayake expressway and the main road from Mattala to Uma Oya.