US$ 3 billion to be invested in ports

Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) Chairman Dr. Priyath B. Wickrama made an exclusive presentation at the International Port Security Conference in the Netherlands on 28 September 2011.

Expressing views delivering the keynote address at the International Port Security 2011 conference on the subject of the past successes of securing Sri Lankan ports and the predicted effects of the future growth on security mechanisms, he said that approximately US$ 3 billion would be invested in the port sector alone and the funding would be made available by the Asian Development Bank, People’s Republic of China, India, Denmark and Japan.

“Other than this, the private sector too from various countries has committed to invest a total of US$ 2.2 billion in areas of manufacturing, assembling, warehousing, ro-ro handling and other relevant areas and we have already received offers worth of US$ 1.2 billion to invest in the Port of Colombo and approximately US$ 1 billion at Mahinda Rajapaksa Port in Hambantota,” he said.

Sri Lanka is situated in the Indian Ocean to the south of India which has over 2,500-year written history. The country is a tropical island which is gifted with natural resources, a proud nation, great culture and a rich national heritage. For mariners who travelled from the West to the East via ‘Seda Mawatha’ or ‘Silk Route’ in the past along the network of interlinking trade routes, Sri Lanka or ‘Serendib’ became a haven for anchoring their sailing crafts.

Dark era

Wickrama also reminded the gathering that the 30-year civil war that prevailed in the country caused significant hardships for the people, environment and the Sri Lankan economy.

“During this dark era, the economy was virtually at a standstill with inhumane attacks on economic targets by the LTTE. The bomb blast at the Central Bank building of Sri Lanka, attacks made at the Colombo International Airport, railway stations, roads, bridges and other installations with economic value are only a few of them. The violence killed thousands of innocent civilians, politicians and intellectuals in addition to the members of armed forces,” he added.

Speaking on the violence created by the terrorists in relation to the Sri Lankan port sector, he said that the LTTE carried out three attacks via land, sea and air at the Port of Colombo with a view to stopping all ship movements.

“I recollect the day prior to Sinhala and Tamil New Year, which is celebrated by both Sinhalese and Tamils of our country. The LTTE carried out an attack at the Port of Colombo from the seafront, which was successfully repulsed by the Sri Lanka Navy with the cooperation of the security staff of the SLPA. Bomb blasts by the LTTE in and around Colombo, the capital of Sri Lanka, from time to time hampered smooth and efficient ports operations at the Port of Colombo. In addition to the Port of Colombo, they attacked Galle and Trincomalee Ports as well.

“Sea Tigers of the LTTE even attacked a commercial ship anchored at the port of Trincomalee, creating fears among the people in the Eastern Province. The unfortunate situation created by them resulted in Sri Lanka being listed on the war risk list and as a consequence, higher insurance premiums had to be borne by the ships calling at the ports of Sri Lanka. This resulted in higher freight rates being paid by the importers and exporters causing higher prices payable for imports and discouraging exports from Sri Lanka. The situation became even worse with the withdrawal of shipping lines that were dispatching their ships to Sri Lankan seaports,” the Chairman said.

“Our armed forces and other agencies concerned worked very closely as one team to successfully fight terrorism. The National Intelligent Bureau gathered all necessary information to detect any possible attacks by the LTTE and the Sri Lanka Army, Navy and Air Force protected our country from the land, seafront and the air, based on the information gathered by the Intelligence Bureau. The Sri Lanka Police was charged with looking after civilian aspects of security and assisted armed forces wherever applicable. Other State agencies such as the Immigration and Emigration Department, Sri Lanka Customs and Ports Authority security service, etc. played a key role during the period of war in their respective disciplines.”

Protecting ports

From the point of view of seaports which are located between the sea and the land, the Sri Lanka Navy had to undertake and provide security for all the seaports of the country. They introduced various security arrangements and methods and made the port users aware of the necessity of observing rules and regulations pertaining to port security.

They had drawn contingency plans in consultation with the Ports Authority and conducted rehearsals and drills at regular intervals to educate the port community as to how they should meet any unexpected situations. The role played by Sri Lanka Navy during the time of war ensured the continuity of commercial port operations with minimum disturbances. They were capable of encountering even suicide attacks with determination and courage. Their experience can be shared even today by the other nations that face terrorism or any other similar situations such as maritime malpractices and crimes.

Defeating terrorism

President Mahinda Rajapaksa, when he was elected as the President of Sri Lanka, invited the LTTE leadership for discussions to find solutions for the problems they claimed. They were given ample opportunities to discuss and resolve issues, whenever such issues arose. But the LTTE avoided all such offers, including nonattendance at the discussions arranged in Geneva, Switzerland, to find the solutions for the problems prevailing through negotiations.

As a seasoned and experienced politician with human friendly attitudes, the President gave leadership and took farsighted decisions to protect the property and the civilians of the country, particularly in northern and eastern regions. All forces were brought together to fight against terrorism following humanitarian approaches in order to ensure the dawn of peace, economic development and normalcy in the day-to-day work of the people.

“In this manner, a combined effort was made by the political leadership with all three forces and Sri Lankan Police to bring the situation under control. I have to emphasise on the unconditional support extended by our friendly nations at the time of need and the patience and commitment shown by the general public to achieve the peace and harmony within a relatively short period of time,” Dr. Wickrama noted.

Security threats

He also said that although Sri Lanka had successfully eliminated the terrorism within the country, no one could assure that any individual nation was free from any threat affecting the security of any country. “As an island, we have to mainly depend on international trade. We are located in South Asia, where most of the countries have not been able to fight terrorism successfully. Hence, cross border terrorism cannot be ruled out. Smuggling of commercial and industrial products from country to country and from region to region has become a common problem today. We have strengthened Sri Lanka Customs and Immigration authorities to monitor these situations very closely and minimise such incidents. In addition, transnational crimes are common today. Therefore, we should take cognition to arrest the situation created by certain elements by way of crimes and malpractices. Such terrorism could attack on personnel or goods transferring from country to country due to various reasons,” he said. The increased number of piracy-related incidents has affected the tranquil social set-ups of many nooks and corners of the global arena at present. Although it is not a common feature within the territorial waters of Sri Lanka, the country has developed its national maritime policy to minimise such incidents with the strengthening of the coast guard service and other maritime-related security arrangements.

Incidents of sea piracy are not reported in and around Sri Lanka frequently as in the case of the Malacca Strait, the Gulf region and in African waters such as Somalia. However, as any sea piracy attack could be extended to a ship plying any other sea route, the Sri Lankan Coast Guard service and Sri Lanka Navy are closely monitoring ship movements in and out of the country’s territorial waters to arrest any incidence of sea piracy. The authorities are concerned about all threats of piracy and are taking all possible steps efficiently within the country and cooperating within the region and internationally to ensure free movements of vessels within the territorial waters of Sri Lanka.

100% compliant

Dr. Wickrama also reminded that Sri Lankan seaports were the first Asian ports to be equipped with ISPS Code requirements. The ports meet all the requirements under the ISPS code of international maritime organisation to ensure no ships with undeclared dangerous goods enter the ports in Sri Lanka. The SLPA has installed all the facilities to meet CSI requirements and mega port initiative arrangements. Sri Lanka’s ports have been 100% CSI compliant since 2005. “We have made available facilities under the Mega Port Initiative since 2006. Any container or cargo loaded from a seaport in Sri Lanka will be checked and certified under CSI and Mega Port Initiative programmes that boxes are free from radioactive substances and explosives. Any trade either originating or transhipping via Sri Lanka’s seaports are free from any security threats. In this manner all requirements imposed by the United States and European Union are being strictly followed by Sri Lanka’s seaports,” he said.

Maritime hub

Although Sri Lanka is located almost on the busy sea route from the West to the East, the unfavourable situation which prevailed in the country for the last three decades prevented Sri Lanka from taking advantage of its ideal location.

Developing of five hubs – maritime, aviation, commercial, energy and knowledge – is at present being developed based on the concept of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, to serve as the regional logistics and commercial hub for economic development of the country.

Under the guidance of the President, all infrastructure facilities such as roads, rails, power plants, hotels, recreation centres, the tourism industry and a number of other key social and industrial areas are being developed, which were not experienced any time in the past. The present development process has hence been taken to all parts of the country including the north and the east. This expedited development process has resulted in serving all communities equally with the decentralised development programmes of the country.

Colombo Port

Expressing views over the developments being implemented in the country’s port sector at present, Dr. Wickrama stated that as the Port of Colombo was becoming the busiest port in South Asia, the necessity to enhance its capacity had arisen. He also said that the Colombo Port Expansion Project would increase the capacity of the port, making it the largest container port in South Asia.  The port will be developed in three stages and each container terminal will add another 2.4 m TEUs, enhancing the total capacity up to 13.0 m TEUs from the existing 4.5 m TEUs at present.

“Colombo is our present commercial capital. However, we have observed a variety of constraints in expanding Colombo any further, mainly due to restriction on land adjoining the seaport. We made a comprehensive study to identify the prevailing problems and to find immediate solutions to make available spacious facilities for investors to attract them to invest in Sri Lanka. We have drawn up a plan for the shifting of the commercial capital from Colombo to Hambantota, mainly due to ample land area underutilised there at present,” Dr. Wickrama stated.

Hambantota Port

Hambantota is situated only a few nautical miles away from the East West sea route. The first and foremost step to be taken to develop a commercial city is to construct a seaport with all modern facilities.

Accordingly, construction work of Mahinda Rajapaksa Port in Hambantota was commenced and the phase one of the project has already been inaugurated. The second phase of the port is currently underway. The port will provide 17 meters depth in the water basin and 16 meters depth in the channel under phase one, with two berths for handling of general cargo and two berths for handling of oil and gas tankers.

The port will be connected to all parts of the country with a rail and road connectivity network. Facilities are made available for setting up of factories, stores, warehouses within and outside the port premises, enabling entrepreneurs to use the port for importation of raw materials and shipping of manufacturing goods. The second international airport will be built in Hambantota to provide better travelling facilities for entrepreneurs and to attract more tourists to Sri Lanka.

Galle and Trincomalee Ports

Meanwhile, the Port of Galle will be developed as a tourist destination with facilities of mooring of yachts in the marinas. Passenger terminals and other facilities such as Customs, Immigration and shopping centres will be made available with connectivity to the Colombo Matara Highway, enabling any one to travel from Galle to Colombo within less than one hour.  Steps are being taken to set up an industrial zone with facilities for tourism including whale watching within the land owned by the SLPA under the development programme of the Port of Trincomalee, which is located in the area that experienced conflict during the war-torn period. Investors could use the facilities within the industrial zone to manufacture their products and use the Port of Trincomalee for the importation of raw material and shipping of manufacturing goods.

Focal point of growth

“You are aware that Asia will be the focal point of growth in the future. China and India have already become economic giants of the world with their grown economies. A total of 22% of the world population is in South Asia. Both China and India are growing at a rapid phase and as a result Sri Lanka will be the ideal location for the investors to develop their regional centres to derive benefits of economic development of these two countries. Our workers are very knowledgeable and we have developed the necessary infrastructure for the investors to use these advantageous positions for mutual benefit. In this manner, we can offer you ample opportunities to utilise the facilities created within and outside the Port of Colombo, Hambantota and Trincomalee within our free trade zones and industrial zones to invest in your areas of choice, ensuring higher returns of your funds,” Dr. Wickrama said.

Opportunities for investment

He also noted that the ability to reach historical monuments, wildlife, different climates and any such admirable site within a short period of two to three hours made it easy to fit in such visits in spite of busy work schedules and that there were tremendous opportunities for foreign entrepreneurs to invest in highly-developing Sri Lanka.

“We therefore, invite you to visit our country and explore the possibility of investing in Sri Lanka and extend your fullest cooperation to achieve the objective of our President to make Sri Lanka the ‘Wonder of Asia,’” he added. Wickrama’s address at the International Port Security 2011 Conference in the Netherlands mainly focused on the past success of securing Sri Lankan ports and the predicted effects of future growth on security mechanisms.

The presentation included a number of major issues in this regard, such as the interagency policing of the Port of Colombo and keeping the port incident free, the LTTE conflict and changes to security from a counter-terror perspective, the success of port security operations in Sri Lanka: facts and figures, the Port of Hambantota: an overview of the associated security challenges and becoming the logistics and transhipment mega hub of South Asia: future traffic and expansion.