Bimal leads delegation to Global Aviation and Maritime Symposium, bilateral engagements in Singapore

Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation Minister and Leader of the House. Bimal Rathnayake undertook an official visit to Singapore from 13 to 15 July, to attend the Global Aviation and Maritime Symposium and a series of high-level engagements. 

This visit underscored Sri Lanka’s commitment to strengthening partnerships in the aviation, maritime, and logistics sectors while advancing the country’s position as a regional transport and trade hub.

Minister Rathnayake participated as a speaker at the Ministerial and Industry Roundtable on 14 July 2025, themed “Shaping Tomorrow’s Transport: People, Technology, and Policy”. He joined a panel that included Aviation and Aerospace Development Minister of Nigeria Festus Keyamo, Transport and Logistics Services Minister of Saudi Arabia Saleh bin Nasser Al-Jasser, Transport, Energy, Communications and Innovation Minister of Tuvalu Simon Kofe, IFATCA President and CEO Helena Sjöström Falk, RwandAir Ltd., CEO Yvonne Manzi Makolo, and Singapore Maritime Officers’ Union General Secretary Mary Liew.

During the Roundtable, Minister Rathnayake highlighted the need for closer collaboration between the aviation and maritime sectors to enhance resilience across global transport networks. He also stressed the importance of regional cooperation and joint crisis response mechanisms. He noted Sri Lanka’s unique position as a regional air-sea gateway and outlined national efforts to integrate transport, highways, ports, and aviation under one Ministry for the first time since independence, in order to harness synergies and drive strategic infrastructure development.

On 15 July, the Minister addressed the High-Level Panel on “Strategies to Support Safe Aviation Growth” at the opening of the 3rd Asia Pacific Summit for Aviation Safety (AP-SAS), which included transport leaders and civil aviation regulators. The Minister emphasised that aviation safety remains one of the top national priorities in Sri Lanka, guided by a Master Plan aligned with ICAO standards and supported by strong political leadership. He also underscored that the integrated approach to managing land, sea, and air transport, with civil aviation playing a pivotal role in supporting tourism, trade, and global connectivity.

Minister Rathnayake also held productive discussions with Acting Minister for Transport and Senior Minister of State for Finance of Singapore Jeffrey Siow. The Minister expressed Sri Lanka’s interest in entering into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Singapore on Green and Digital Shipping Corridor collaboration, focusing on decarbonisation and digitalisation in the maritime sector. He also invited Singaporean companies to explore investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s logistics sector and requested capacity-building support for Sri Lankan officials. Further, the Minister proposed that Sri Lanka be considered as a source country for the recruitment of bus drivers. Acting Minister Siow conveyed Singapore’s readiness to engage constructively on the proposed MoU and undertook to relay the investment and recruitment proposals to the relevant Ministers.

During a meeting with Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office, Second Minister for Finance and National Development, and Leader of the House of Singapore Indranee Rajah, Minister Rathnayake suggested the establishment of a Sri Lanka–Singapore Parliamentary Friendship Group to promote dialogue between the two legislatures and invited Minister Indranee Rajah to visit Sri Lanka with a parliamentary delegation. He also requested study visit opportunities for Sri Lankan parliamentary staff. Minister Indranee Rajah welcomed the proposal and offered to facilitate connections between Sri Lanka and Infrastructure Asia to explore partnerships with relevant agencies and investors for infrastructure projects, particularly for transport priorities.

On the sidelines of the symposium, Minister Rathnayake held meetings with Secretary General of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Arsenio Dominguez, and Secretary General of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Juan Carlos Salazar.

As part of his visit, Minister Rathnayake undertook a familiarisation tour of Tuas Port, where he was briefed by officials of the PSA Group. These engagements provided valuable insights into port automation, integrated logistics management, and workforce development, which are areas Sri Lanka is keen to develop in its maritime modernisation agenda. Further, the High Commission facilitated a briefing by the Maritime and Port Authority (MPA) Academy of Singapore, during which Minister Rathnayake explored opportunities for collaboration in maritime education and training. The Dean of the Academy offered slots for Sri Lankans to attend Maritime Transformation and Innovation Program scheduled for April 2026 and conveyed that the upcoming training calendar would be shared with Sri Lanka to facilitate greater participation by Sri Lankan professionals.

Taking the opportunity during the visit, the Minister experienced Singapore’s public transport system (Bus and MRT), providing insights into its efficiency and user-centred design. He was briefed by Singaporean officials on the overall functioning of the network, including system integration, service standards, operational management and non-fare revenue models.

Minister Rathnayake was accompanied by High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to Singapore Senarath Dissanayake, Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation Ministry Additional Secretary – Development Tharani Anoja Gamage, High Commission Head of Chancery/Minister Ahamed Razee and Minister Counsellor – Commercial Bhagya Abeykoon, during the above engagements.