Colombo Port City can be Sri Lanka’s ‘single catalyst of growth,’ says Harsha Amarasekera

Colombo Port City Economic Commission Chairman Harsha Amarasekera - Pic by Upul Abayasekara 

• Notes Port City Colombo can connect Sri Lanka to global service industries—fund management, fintech, arbitration and e-commerce
• Suggests Sri Lanka could position itself as a low-cost regional arbitration hub, attracting cases from India, Bangladesh and Pakistan and potentially hosting a branch of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre
• Clarifies Port City’s original incentive scheme remains intact and competitive, developed in collaboration with Finance Ministry, contrary to misconceptions of change
• Insists focus should shift from expanding tax incentives to simplifying investor entry, including streamlined visas, expatriate employment rules and EPF/ETF compliance for short-term foreign staff
• Asserts regulatory clarity on global income declarations and faster IP and trademark registration processes vital to build investor confidence
• States Commission aims to enact key legislative amendments soon under 2026 Budget to clear pending applications and improve framework in phases

By Charumini de Silva 

Colombo Port City Economic Commission Chairman Harsha Amarasekera, PC said the project has the potential to become the “single catalyst of growth” for Sri Lanka, positioning the island as the “Switzerland of the region” for trade, investment and services, backed by an attractive incentive regime and renewed policy stability.

Speaking at the EY Sri Lanka post-Budget panel discussion on Friday, he said the Port City, as the country’s first and only service-oriented Special Economic Zone (SEZ), can connect Sri Lanka to high-value global sectors such as fund management, fintech, arbitration and e-commerce.

He noted that while establishing an independent arbitration hub from scratch could be difficult in the presence of established centers like Singapore or Kuala Lumpur, Sri Lanka could attract regional arbitration cases by positioning itself as a cost-effective alternative. “Singapore as an arbitration centre is expensive. Sri Lanka can become a cheaper destination for disputes involving India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. We could even explore the possibility of hosting a branch of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre within the Port City,” he suggested.

Amarasekera described Sri Lanka’s geographical advantage as pivotal to its role in South Asia’s trade and investment flows. “In this region, we are the Switzerland of the world. Many Bangladeshi and Pakistani companies don’t want to operate through India and vice versa. So Sri Lanka can become the neutral hub for trade, meetings, and investment across the region,” he said, adding that the Port City’s convention facilities and business infrastructure could facilitate such activities.

Reflecting on the broader economic framework, he dismissed misconceptions that the Port City’s incentive scheme had been altered, explaining that the original benefits were time-bound designed to kickstart the development and was later disrupted by the pandemic and foreign exchange crisis. “The new rules-based governance structure and incentive framework, developed with the Finance Ministry, remain very competitive compared to those in Dubai, Singapore or India’s Gift City,” he noted.

Amarasekera asserted that the focus should now be on simplifying operational entry rather than expanding fiscal incentives. “We must make it easier for investors to come in and start operations. That means streamlining residency and long-term visas, employment conditions for expatriates and resolving issues such as EPF/ETF compliance for short-term foreign staff,” he said.

He also pointed to the need for regulatory clarity on global income declarations and for accelerating intellectual property registrations, which can take up to seven to eight years. “Investors need assurance of policy consistency and efficient execution. That’s what gives confidence,” he stressed.

Regarding the legislative amendments expected under the 2026 Budget, Amarasekera said the Commission aims to implement practical changes swiftly rather than wait for ‘a perfect law’.

“We want to get the key amendments through quickly to approve the pending applications and then continue improving the framework in collaboration with the Finance Ministry,” he explained.

Amarasekera opined that with the right mix of regulatory reforms, policy consistency, and execution efficiency, the Colombo Port City could become the “single most important catalyst” driving Sri Lanka’s economic transformation in the coming decade.