IODA pledges to support SL to make country diving hub

By Shanika Sriyananda 

The Indian Ocean Divers Association (IODA) recently pledged its support, collaboration, and providing expertise to Sri Lanka to develop meaningful and sustainable marine tourism that will lead to developing the blue economy in the country.

This was discussed at length at the recent IODA Ocean Summit 2025 held in Colombo as its first initiative which was organised together with the Chamber of Marine Industries Sri Lanka (CMISL). 

This important regional summit brought together key stakeholders from across the Indian Ocean to engage in meaningful dialogue and action around maritime tourism, sustainable diving and ocean conservation to promote vibrant marine industry in the Indian Ocean region.

IODA, which is a non-profit organisation, was formed by some of the inspiring diving personalities from the Indian Ocean destinations with the mission to foster collaborations, sustainable practices and community development among diving enthusiasts, professionals, and stakeholders. It is committed to promote diving in the Indian Ocean destinations and advocate for the industry in various ways and on a diverse range of platforms.

Sri Lanka has 1,340 kilometres of sea shore around the coastal area around the country and can promote water sports throughout the year. But the country underutilised this great opportunity – Chamber of Marine Industries of Sri Lanka Chairman Indhra Kaushal Rajapaksa	Sri Lanka has 1,340 It is the single-minded agenda of the IODA which aims to protect and conserve oceans in the region from shipwrecks to Mauritius, Seychelles, Diageo Asia, India, Sri Lanka and Maldives –  IODA President Prahlad Kakar	The SLTPB has formulated a roadmap for ocean tourism and launched it last April. Sri Lanka is blessed with lots of ocean resources, especially 165 shipwrecks around the country – Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau Director – Tourism Planning, Development and Investment  Dr. Prasad Jayasuriya	Sri Lanka has the potential, capacity, and all the raw ingredients to become a fine dive-centric market – Maldives Holiday Collections Group  CEO Mohamed  Hifnaz Jiffrey	Sri Lanka needed to enhance communication capabilities to take country’s tourism destination to the world – Tourism technology pioneer in the Maldives Ikaram Hassan

It was highlighted that the IODA Ocean Summit 2025 is a reflection of Association’s dedication towards enhancing the industry by working collectively.

The CMISL Chairman Indhira Kaushal Rajapaksa delivering the welcome address expressed the importance of the shared purpose of the countries in the Indian Ocean region to build the blue economy which would benefit all.

Explaining about the CMISL’s three-year-old history, he said with the assistance of the Export Development Board it was established as the apex body of the boat and ship building and providing services for offshore industries while helping boat manufacturers.

“With the MOU signed with the Maldives three years ago with the then Maldivian Boat Association president Ismail has resulted in Sri Lanka getting connected to IODA, “ he said, adding that Sri Lanka will be having IODA in the next two years. 

IODA Summit for collaborations

“This Summit is a space for collaborations for conversations and knowledge exchange. It is an opportunity to explore not just what the ocean gives us but also what we must give back in return,” he said.

Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau’s (SLTPB) Director Tourism planning, Development and Investment Dr. Prasad Jayasuriya appreciated the IODA for holding the Summit in Colombo and explained Sri Lanka’s future initiatives in shaping sustainable ocean tourism. 

He said ocean area was not a priority but with the CMISL working closely with SLTPB over the years had pushed the Bureau to consider more on ocean resources to tap more opportunities in tourism.

“After ending the 30-year long war in 2009, SLTPB had a nine years long dream to develop the sector but unfortunately within four to five years we had to face deadly disasters starting from the Easter Sunday bombing, COVID and then severe financial crisis that caused severe threat to the country’s tourism sector. After such a severe blow, we got the opportunity to draw plans to uplift the tourism sector again”, he said.

Dr. Jayasuriya revealed that one priority area that had been identified was the ocean, which is seven times larger than the land area of Sri Lanka, which had not been utilised for its full potential for tourism. “ The SLTPB started working with all stakeholders, who are keen on ocean tourism and intend to plan it in a sustainable manner. Therefore, we looked at redefining ocean life styles and ocean tourism while considering diving as an important part of it,” he said.

SL lacking expertise in ocean tourism

Dr. Jayasuriya said that since Sri Lanka lacked required knowledge or expertise to develop ocean tourism strategy, they got the support of individuals, organisations, state and private sectors who had certain knowledge and done some work over the years in marine tourism. 

According to Dr. Jayasuriya, in 2023 the SLTPB formed a committee with 25 individuals with the assistance of ADB to get international consultants who have expertise and knowledge and work with those 25 people who have got the knowledge and worked on this area to share their ideas to put them into a framework that is best suited for Sri Lanka’s marine tourism industry. 

He said for over a year they had been travelling with consultants in all the coastal areas and talking to the ground level people because they felt that an effective road map or a strategy should be developed not in office but after having discussions with people at ground level.

“Finally, we formulated a road map for ocean tourism and launched it last April. Sri Lanka is blessed with lots of ocean resources, especially 165 shipwrecks around the country. Meanwhile, there are lots of threats to the ocean marine industry in Sri Lanka. Therefore this Summit is very useful for Sri Lanka to get their inputs to proceed with this road map effectively,” he said emphasising that Sri Lanka›s tourism industry should not prosper in isolation but it needs more collaborative efforts from the regional experts.

Dynamite fishing – a threat to ocean

He claimed that dynamite fishing was one priority area that need special focus as it destroy the entire marine tourism industry and the threats and challenges to this industry needed to be addressed collectively in collaboration by getting away the conventional barriers to work unitedly as one force to protect entire ocean area in around Sri Lanka, around the region and around the globe.

 IODA’s President Prahlad Kakar, who is a filmmaker, ocean conservationist and India’s pioneer in scuba diving, highlighted the important role play by all like-minded ocean lovers including fishermen, hoteliers, tourists and others who are involved with the ocean for different activities together to actively contribute to ocean conservation. 

Delivering the keynote address he said bringing them all to a one platform would pave the way for everybody to get benefits, especially the oceans. “It is the single-minded agenda of the IODA which aims to protect and conserve oceans in the region from shipwrecks to Mauritius, Seychelles, Diageo Asia, India, Sri Lanka and Maldives. If we can come as one body, we can set standards, procedures and shared responsibilities for all the stakeholders to form the world’s first movement that can set leadership for ocean conservation,” he said explaining the reason why the IODA decided to host its first Summit in Sri Lanka. 

SL child of the Indian ocean

He called Sri Lanka as the child of the Indian Ocean and with its significant feature of locating in the centre of the Indian Ocean Sri Lanka had all the responsibilities of protecting its mother- the Indian Ocean while deriving all the privileges due to it being in the strategic location. 

“Being located in the centre, Maldives from one side and India from the other side Sri Lanka is enjoying underwater diversities in the Indian Ocean. Therefore, more than any other country Sri Lanka has a big role to play as an island in the middle of the Indian Ocean,” Kakar said adding Sri Lanka can be ship wreck diving capital in the world as it owns 164 ship wrecks around its seas.

He urged the authorities to protect shipwrecks from vandalism and to manage a database of them with photographs and history of each ship wreck. 

Kakal said that those ship wrecks could be promoted as a year-round diving destination.

“It is rare that a country has this opportunity to promote ship wreck diving throughout the year as other countries are being affected due to the monsoon. Sri Lanka should promote these shipwrecks internationally as there are divers, who are interested only in shipwrecks,” he said.

The IODA President said each ship wreck, which are priceless treasures, had a history, record and a reason to be a wreck and monument and they should be protected leaving no one to take a single artefact from them. 

SL’s 164 ship wrecks 

“They should be preserved for the generations to come. Sri Lanka can not only be promoted as a diving destination but it has the potential to be a destination for surfing, snorkelling, whale watching, mountain climbing, elephant watching and several other nature trails as all these sites are within one and half hours’ drive within the country. I have seen no other country like Sri Lanka than Lebanon,” he said.

The first panel discussion held under the theme ‘ Designing the ideal Indian Ocean water sports destination – exploring the opportunities around the Emerald Isle was moderated by former Commander of the Sri Lanka Navy Admiral Priyantha Perera.

Replying to the question on what regulatory or policy innovations that the SLTPB was looking at to implement that could make Sri Lanka a magnet for global marine adventure seekers while ensuring sustainability, Dr. Jayasuriya said first they have to identify the threats and challenges for the ocean resources from the people with the inputs of those with expertise and knowledge. 

A strong regulatory framework 

“As a regulatory body of the tourism industry in the country, we are not in a rush to open up  until we take all precautions again under the direction of people who have that knowledge and expertise. We are very keen in getting the right expertise. It is different for professional divers compared to ordinary divers and we need to make provisions for people to experience it without harming the resources. It is the biggest challenge,” he said while emphasising the importance of implementing a strong regulatory framework and right policies to protect marine resources.

He further said since the SLTPB as a single authority was not fully strong enough to enforce regulations, a representative from the Presidential Secretariat was also included in the committee. 

“We believe that a lot of coordination and communication has to be done within inter- ministries and other organisations for everybody to take collective responsibilities to ensure that the right regulatory framework with the right policy decisions are taken to protect the country’s marine resources,” he explained.

Boat and ship building in SL

Explaining how Sri Lanka’s boat-building, chartering and marine industries were aligned to create integrated marine tourism circuits, Rajapaksa said Sri Lanka’s ship and boat building was at par with any international layer in the world market.

“We formed the chartering company – Seal Leisure Yachting Group in Sri Lanka by chartering 10 yachts within the country. We see with the increase tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka, as the Chamber we are promoting boating in the country and making boating a lifestyle in Sri Lanka. We see lots of enthusiasm among people for boating,” he said.

Rajapaksa said as a country which has a 1,340km of sea shore around the coastal area around the country, Sri Lanka can promote water sports throughout the year. 

“But Sri Lanka is underutilised this great opportunity and need to consider it seriously with the support of the experts in IODA and diving experts,” Rajapaksa said.

He pointed out the potential of developing diving in the country with the support of the Chambers and the SLTPB to tap more tourists and diving enthusiasts to come to Sri Lanka.

Group Chief Executive Officer of Maldives Holiday Collections Group Mohamed Hifna Jiffrey explaining about gaps and opportunities that he sees in Sri Lanka to complete Maldives high-value marine tourism said that Sri Lanka had the potential and capacity and all raw ingredients to become a fine dive centric market.

SL can learn from Maldives

“We being in the Maldives, I have the opportunity to get close to luxury tourism in terms of standards and service. All stakeholders need to work together rather than work in silos. In Sri Lanka, there are long coastlines, very close proximity to blue whales, fantastic ship wreck sites and the opportunity to dive across the year because monsoons keep moving. What Sri Lanka lacks is the vision as a country to make use of the seas to make a blue economy,” he said.

Jiffery said that Maldives had gone a long way to promote its tourism and Sri Lanka could learn from them in terms of formulating policies and standards.

“In Maldives it is a combined effort but in Sri Lanka dive centres operate in isolation. Everybody needs to work together for a common objective and build eco systems where people can enjoy the beach. Sri Lanka definitely has the potential,” he said but Sri Lanka always attracts the majority of the wrong type of tourists because the country has been seen as a budget centric country while it has so much to offer.

Ikaram Hassan, a pioneer in revolutionising tourism technology in Maldives and developing technology in hotels, resorts, guest houses and dive centres for over 31 years, said Sri Lanka needed to enhance communication capabilities to take the country›s tourism destination to the world.

“There are 164 shipwrecks in Sri Lanka but how many people in the world know about these treasures?”, he asked stressing that there were lots of work to be done with regard to information dissemination by the Government, industries, private sector industries to let the world know about country’s tourism destinations.

He said all Sri Lankans have the responsibility of creating an information platform to make Sri Lanka a popular destination. 

“A lot of people travel around the world and today 80 percent of the people book online. Over 81 percent use mobile phones. I think it is very important as regulators, the executive body of the government and the private industries come together to build that information platform,” Hassan said.

One-stop digital platform for tourism 

According to Hassan, Sri Lanka lacked a one-stop digital platform to promote nautical tourism similar to Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, which had included all information with regard to the country›s tourism in an effective way to tap tourists worldwide.

Hassan said that IODA can support Sri Lanka in policy making, data research and introducing regional best practices to support Sri Lanka to transform into a next generation water sports hub. 

Dr. Jayasuriya said the SLTPB was looking at marine tourism as a niche market for those who could spend more for a unique experience than just diving. 

He also said under the five year development plan for the tourism sector, the Government aimed to increase two million tourist arrivals last year to five million tourist arrivals by 2030. 

“Some of the ship wrecks may not be accessible for ordinary tourists as they are located in deep waters where professional divers can dive in. However, we are looking at options of creating natural diving experiences by sinking some of the railway compartments in shallow waters for ordinary divers to get a feeling about what is diving.  We will get the support of experts in diving,” he said, adding that those were still ideas lined up to implement and would seek knowledge of experts to cater to the high end market for those who are willing to have unique experiences. 

Kakal pledged to offer IODA’s collective knowledge to Sri Lanka at any time to develop and promote its marine tourism. 

In the second panel discussion founder Orca dive club Anees Adenwala, former Navy Commander Admiral Priyantha Perera, Director General Coast Conservation and Coastal Resources Management Department Dr. P.B. Terney Pradeep Kumara, President Sri Lanka Sub-Aqua Club Imran Yakoob and Co-founder of Scuba Divine Maldives Rifshan Shameen shared their views on the topic ‘Cultural underwater heritage – Preserving and promoting submerged histories.

Experts from Maldives, Sri Lanka and India also expressed their views on two other panel discussions themed ‘the future of diving – innovation, experience and market trends and Blue economy and marine conservation.

The experts emphasised IODA’s mission to bring together individual divers, researchers, organisations and businesses to share knowledge, resources and best practices that promote sustainability, marine conservation and  safe diving. 

“Through collective action and mutual support, we aim to lead the Indian Ocean region in preserving its invaluable marine ecosystems, advancing sustainable tourism and empowering local communities to actively participate in ocean protection”, they said.

Engaging diving businesses and industry stakeholders, representing industry policy advocacy, enhancing public awareness and advocacy, facilitating research and innovation and ensuring long-term sustainability are some of the objectives of the IODA. 

-Pix by Shehan Gunasekara