Colombo, Sep 10 (IANS): Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has left for Italy to attend the G20 Interfaith Forum which will begin on Sunday.

A statement from the Foreign Ministry issued on Thursday said Rajapaksa was accompanied by Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris and Foreign Secretary Admiral Jayanath Colombage, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rajapaksa is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at the opening session of the forum which will be held at the University of Bologna.

An official from the Prime Minister's office told Xinhua that Rajapaksa will hold bilateral discussions with the Italian leaders and other world leaders on the sidelines of the forum.

He will return to Sri Lanka on September 16 following the Forum's conclusion on September 14.

The G20 Interfaith Forum offers an annual platform where a network of religiously linked institutions and initiatives engage on global agendas (primarily and including the Sustainable Development Goals.

Beginning in Australia in 2014, the G20 Interfaith Forum has convened annually in the G20 host country.

The Forums have considered wide-ranging agendas, including economic models and systems, the environment, women, families, children, work, humanitarian aid, health, education, freedom of religion or belief, global security, governance, human rights, and the rule of law.