JAAF calls for urgent Colombo Port efficiency reforms
The Joint Apparel Association Forum of Sri Lanka (JAAF), the leading organisation for the nation's clothing industry, has publicly criticised the Colombo Port's operational delays and lack of efficiency.The forum stated Friday (07), warning that these issues are significantly eroding Sri Lankan traders' regional competitiveness.The JAAF highlighted that while Sri Lanka grapples with outdated systems, rival ports in the region—such as India's new Vizhinjam Port, along with facilities in Singapore and Dubai—have embraced seamless digital coordination, faster vessel turnaround times, and fully automated operations.This has already led to some vital transhipment traffic bypassing Colombo and being diverted elsewhere.Over recent months, the JAAF noted, numerous shipping lines have begun to skip calls at the port, occasionally with very little notice.When ships carrying essential inputs like fabric, zippers, or trims are diverted or delayed, it creates major disruptions for local manufacturers.JAAF chief Yohan Lawrence stated that even minor delays can cause production deadlines to be missed, deliveries to be late, or necessitate expensive airfreighting of finished goods to honour customer agreements.The forum stresses that the core problem lies in the port's internal operations, citing slow container movement between terminals, reliance on old manual systems, and poor coordination among various port agencies as the main culprits creating a severe bottleneck.The Joint Apparel Association Forum of Sri Lanka is urgently calling on the Government to prioritise operational reform.Their demanded changes include streamlining digital pre-clearance processes, enhancing cargo tracking, and guaranteeing seamless coordination between different port terminals.There has been no immediate reaction from the Government to the JAAF's demands.This plea for reform comes weeks after local exporters began contending with a new tariff imposed by the United States, a crucial market for Sri Lankan goods.The US introduced a 20 % tariff on Sri Lankan exports, effective from August 07.A top government negotiator, Harshana Suriyapperuma, had previously noted that this rate, down from an initial proposal of 44 %, positioned Sri Lanka on a level playing field with major garments rivals like Bangladesh and Vietnam.
