Maldivian President on official visit to Sri Lanka
[Monday, February 11, 2008 - 08.00 GMT]   

President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom of the Maldives and Madam Gayoom will arrive in Sri Lanka tomorrow (12) on an official visit at the invitation of President Mahinda Rajapaksa. 

The President and Madam Nazreena Gayoom will be accompanied by Maldivian Foreign Minister Abdulla Shaheed and a high level delegation from the Maldives.

Shortly after his election in December 2005, President Rajapaksa visited the Maldives in February 2006, when he extended the invitation to the Maldivian President to visit Sri Lanka. 

The Maldivian delegation arriving at the Bandaranaike International Airport at 1 pm. tomorrow will be received with full State honours. The first item on the programme of President Gayoom’s visit is a meeting with President Rajapaksa at 4 pm. tomorrow at the Presidential Secretariat. Sri Lanka and the Maldives are expected to sign several bi-lateral agreements during this visit of President Gayoom. 

During this visit, the Maldivian President will be conferred a special honour by President Mahinda Rajapaksa to mark three decades of friendship and co-operation at the highest level between the two countries. 

President Rajapaksa will host the Maldivian President and his delegation to a banquet tomorrow night. 

On February 13 the Maldivian President will have bi-lateral discussions with Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama. This will be followed by meeting with Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayake. On the same evening he will meet Minister A.H.M. Fowzie. 

Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said the visit of the Maldivian President will help strengthen the friendship and good relations between Sri Lanka and Maldives and also contribute to greater regional co-operation.