Mattala as freight hub can add to Sri Lanka’s brand value

Business is about brand value building and if Sri Lanka is to maximise its true potential post the war, we must make decisions based on ROI and brand value building, said respected Board Director in the private and public sector Rohantha Athukorala, who was the guest speaker at the Bandaranaike International Diplomatic Institute program ‘Diploma in Diplomacy and World Affairs’ at the BMICH.

In this light, he commented that the Mattala Airport must be positioned as a freight hub given the geographic location and market opportunity. “Ideally we should have done the business mapping before the construction of a piece of infrastructure so that the alliances are discussed with the probable business partners and a detailed ROI done. But now that the product is already available, the best option is make tough decisions like what Memphis did in the Mid West of USA and linked up with FedEx,” he added.

Athukorala, who has worked at the Memphis location when he was studying in the US, mentioned that many people laughed when the Memphis Airport was being built, but when FedEx decided set up in the airport vicinity where 297 cargo planes land and take off between midnight and 5 a.m. daily, it became the single biggest employer for Memphis.

Sri Lanka must pursue this option with a Sri Lankan touch, said Athukorala, who is an expert in export strategy development in industry and commerce in the country and sits on many private and public sector corporations as Board Director.

He went on to share some insights to the changing geographic landscape, noting that the Mattala Airport could ideally be positioned to take this role of a freight/logistic hub given that the competing locations are very expensive.

The private sector should have been consulted more in the development phase was Athukorala’s view, so that other value chain developments could also have been made to make the Mattala product build the overall brand value of Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka is valued at $ 30.7 b as per the latest Nation Branding report, he added.