Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Türkiye Hasanthi Urugodawatte Dissanayake visited Adana on 16 February 2023 to receive the first donation from the government of Sri Lanka to Türkiye, a consignment of 1500kg of Ceylon Tea organized by the Sri Lanka Tea Board which came via Turkish Airlines to Istanbul and then to Adana. Adana, an area affected by the earthquake, has become a hub for the distribution of emergency cargo coming from all over the world.
The donation was made to the Turkish Embassy in Colombo, and Ambassador Dissanayake together with the Honorary Consul for Sri Lanka in the Mediterranean Region, Beşir Uğurin received the consignment upon arrival in Adana. Representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara Ozkan Durmaz and AFAD representative in Adana Vehbi Kaplan were also present.
The Ambassador called on Mayor of Adana Metropolitan Municipality Zeydan Karalar, and expressed her heartfelt condolences on behalf of the Government and the people of Sri Lanka over the tragic loss of life, injuries and devastation caused by a series of earthquakes in Türkiye on 6th February 2023.
The Mayor of Adana thanked the Ambassador for visiting Adana to receive the first donation made by the Government of Sri Lanka which will be distributed to the affected people. Further, the mayor also appreciated the role of Honorary Consul for Sri Lanka for the Mediterranean Region Beşir Uğur, who donated over 80,000 kg from his company BETA Tea.
The BETA Tea Company was founded by Beşir Uğur in 1985 in Türkiye. He opened an office in Sri Lanka in 1987. BETA Tea is considered the pioneering Turkish business enterprise to enter Sri Lanka and is a leading tea company that promotes Ceylon Tea in Türkiye and several other countries in Central Asia and Russia where the tea is exported. Ambassador Dissanayake also visited the tea packaging plant in the outskirts of the Adana city.
Embassy of Sri Lanka
Ankara
20 February 2023
