Sri Lanka president says aviation safety country's top priority

Sri Lanka's President Maithripala Sirisena on Monday said that aviation safety remains the country's top priority.

He made the remarks when addressing the 53rd Conference of Directors General of Civil Aviation of Asia and Pacific States, held in Colombo.

"My government is committed without any reservations to upgrade, develop and maintain the domestic aviation industry in conformity with the applicable international standards," he said, adding that "all possible measures will be taken for their effective implementation to enhance efficiency, effectiveness and economy."

The president called on international civil aviation players like International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) to focus on planning and developing human resources needed to face future needs of the aviation industry.

"I believe the needs of countries like ours have to get priority in such exercises," he said.

"In addition, integrating business development is another area, which will benefit us and I wish you would focus on it too," he added.

The president said Sri Lanka also needs to improve the safety and security management systems, noting that his country has a relatively good safety maintenance record with no major incidents to be concerned with.

"Nevertheless, aviation safety remains our top priority. We regularly review and update our policies on safety and enhance technology usage," he added.

The president also reiterated Sri Lanka's commitment to advance the development of international civil aviation according to principles and objectives declared in the Convention on International Civil Aviation. Endit