Sri Lanka could achieve status of a rich country by utilizing the potentials in the ocean resources surrounding the Island with its mere strategic location on the key navigational routes in the Indian Ocean.
It is a well-known fact that 90% of the entire world trade depends on Sea transportation. In ocean transport mode, most significant components are Time, Cost & Credibility. Global ports such as Singapore, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Dubai have identified new service requirements and they have provided enhanced maritime activities having identified and catered for those requirements. In order to launch an economic revolution, Sri Lanka identified number of fields that have to be developed. For this purpose, government has commenced certain port development projects and port city development.Without such infrastructure development, Sri Lanka maritime economy cannot contribute to a sustainable growth.
Having realized this, we were convinced that there is a dire necessity of listing a Maritime Directory. Sri Lanka being located in the Indian Ocean as the main commercial maritime hub, has to be upgraded to a next level based on the following factors.
- Existing commercial maritime services and products should be aggressively propagated in the World.
- Worldwide networking has to be established for the fields which are not directly connected or contributing to maritime activities
- Strengthening the inter relationship between each and every segments and fields in the maritime industry of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka’s strategic location in the East – West route could be turned to main supply centre in South Asia by establishing a transshipment hub in connection with the rest of the players in the region by improving its infrastructure development which will bring essential geo-political advantage.
One third of general cargo and two third of crude oil shipments are transmitted through the East – West trade corridor. Therefore, the significance of Sri Lanka cannot be overlooked for its contribution to world bulk shipping trade that includes crude oil products and coal.
Sri Lanka has four main ports namely Port of Colombo, Port of Galle, Port of Hambantota and Port of Trincomalee. We should not forget that we have not taken maximum effort to generate the highest revenue out of those ports.
A mechanism has to be established and launched based on triple factors mentioned above to make Sri Lanka number one maritime hub in the region.
At present, services provided to the maritime sector have not been brought under one platform which will be achieved by this Maritime Directory. This directory is designed and built up on a scientific base which endeavours to provide all the information in maritime sector in Sri Lanka on a single platform. It was identified that the information available for Sri Lankan maritime industry stake holders are confined to very conventional way of information system as such Sri Lanka Maritime Directory has taken best effort to reach the Foreign Service providers as well as locals to access all the information in a single plat form. It is a result of an extensive research conducted by intellectuals related to maritime field as well as other sectors.
Most of Sri Lankan manufacturers and service providers have not identified that they are in an important maritime location in the region.
In designing this Directory we have catered for those categories also to enter in to maritime sector. One of the objectives in this effort is to open avenues for those local industries and investors to build up inter-relationship and also international relationship with their counter- parts in the rest of the world as at present there is no such connectivity.
We hope that Sri Lanka Maritime Directory Web Portal will meet a long felt need by providing these newest ways of information- sharing system.
