Govt. moves to address shipping industry concerns

 Ports Minister Anura Karunathilaka says Cabinet paper already prepared to establish committee to address concerns raised by freight forwarding and NVOCC sector

By Charumini de Silva 

The Government is moving to establish a committee to address concerns raised by the freight forwarding and Non-Vessel Operating Common Carrier (NVOCC) sector, as Sri Lanka seeks to transform Port of Colombo from a predominantly transshipment-driven facility into a broader regional maritime and logistics hub.

Ports Minister Anura Karunathilaka, speaking at the 9th Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka Association of NVOCC Agents (SLANA), said a Cabinet paper had already been prepared to establish the committee, with the Ministry Secretary expected to proceed with its appointment following Cabinet approval.

“I believe that there will be a fair hearing from the Committee, including all stakeholders, including the Government,” Karunathilaka said, assuring industry representatives that the Government would continue engaging stakeholders to find “practical and fair solutions.”

The move comes as the Government pushes a broader strategy to extract greater economic value from Sri Lanka’s strategic location on major East-West shipping routes.

Karunathilaka said Colombo’s role as a leading Indian Ocean transshipment hub would remain important, but argued that Sri Lanka could no longer rely primarily on containers being transferred from one vessel to another.

“While transshipment will continue to remain an important feat of Port of Colombo, our future ambitions should be much broader,” he said.

The Government wants to develop Colombo into a comprehensive maritime and logistics centre encompassing regional distribution, warehousing, container freight stations, logistics parks, bunkering, maritime services, freight forwarding, and e-commerce-related logistics.

The push comes amid rapidly changing global shipping patterns, with geopolitical tensions, disruptions to established routes, and shifts in trade flows increasing the premium on resilient and reliable supply chains.

Karunathilaka said closer Government-private sector cooperation would be critical to ensuring Sri Lanka remained competitive while creating a fair and sustainable operating environment for local businesses.

“Our common objective must be to keep Sri Lanka competitive and attractive for shipping and logistics, while ensuring a fair and sustainable environment for local businesses,” he said.

He said improved efficiency, transparency, digitalisation, and predictability were essential to attracting investment, creating employment, and expanding opportunities for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operating across the maritime and logistics sectors.

The Minister also urged SLANA members to maintain constructive engagement with policymakers, saying their industry experience was critical to developing practical solutions. “Your industry knowledge and experience are invaluable in developing practical policies and solutions,” he said.

Karunathilaka said Sri Lanka already possessed several structural advantages, including its strategic location, existing port infrastructure, skilled workforce, and proximity to some of the world’s fastest-growing markets.

“The challenge is converting those advantages into greater economic value and positioning Sri Lanka as a leading regional logistics hub,” he added.

The Government’s position complements the Sri Lanka Ports Authority’s (SLPA) planned logistics expansion, with Chairman Dr. Parakrama Dissanayake previously outlining plans to launch a new logistics hub incorporating free-zone and bonded warehousing facilities within the next two to three months.

Karunathilaka said the ultimate objective was not simply to expand Port activity, but to build a stronger, more competitive, and sustainable maritime and logistics ecosystem around it.