Trade Minister Wasantha Samarasinghe has defended the government’s delegation to the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) upcoming Trade Policy Review, dismissing criticisms over its composition as “uninformed.” The defense came after questions were raised in Parliament about the necessity of all members attending the session in Geneva from 14 – 17 October.

The Minister’s remarks were a direct response to MP Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, who questioned the inclusion of nine officials, specifically highlighting the presence of a minister’s Public Relations Officer, Nimodi Wickramasinghe. Samarasinghe countered that such comments were made “at a very low level without any understanding of such a technical process.”

The Minister confirmed that a multi-agency team comprising officials from the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Finance, Central Bank, Sri Lanka Customs, and the Board of Investment (BOI) will attend. He stressed the technical nature of the review, stating that the delegation must be prepared to answer 245 specific questions posed by the WTO concerning Sri Lanka’s trade policies.

“This is a discussion of trade policy, not a tour,” Samarasinghe stated in Parliament, adding that technical expertise is required to provide follow-up responses.