The Colombo International Maritime and Logistics Conference is held in South Asia on a rotational basis among the maritime nations of the sub-continent. The focus of the conference is to bring in the shipping, ports and logistics industry to discuss the regional developments of each sector.

The first Colombo International Logistics Conference will be held on August 1 and 2 in Sri Lanka, focusing on promoting Sri Lanka as a new destination for international logistics and as a regional distribution centre beyond its shipping connectivity via its ports.

Colombo International Maritime and Logistics Conference 2022 is scheduled to be held on 12 and 13 September at Cinnamon Grand Hotel, Colombo.

It would be one of the major conferences that would be held in Sri Lanka, after the COVID pandemic. The previous events which were held in Colombo, Mumbai, and Dhaka, attracted global participation, and was supported by many international organisations and governments, where Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, and former Indian Shipping Minister Nitin Gadkari inaugurated the multiday conferences.

• Hidden gem of a logistics centre and a megapolis in the Indian Ocean
• A conference to understand South Asia’s logistics market beyond 2020
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Sri Lanka is known as a mega transshipment location in South Asia. In fact, it’s the fastest growing one among major ports of the world, with the rank of 11th best connected port in the world of shipping. Situated in the middle of the Indian Ocean, connecting multiple continents and reaching out to billions of people, many have not realised that the island nation sitting next to the major market of India is probably the best geographical position for logistics, distribution and storage of both bulk and containerised cargo.

The first-ever Colombo International Logistics Conference is scheduled to be held on 1 and 2 August 2019 at the Galadari Hotel, Colombo and will feature 20 international speakers to discuss modern logistics trends, South Asia’s logistics market and the emerging role of Sri Lanka as a global logistics centre, said the main organiser of the event, Shippers' Academy Colombo CEO and Export Development Board (EDB) Logistics Advisory Committee Chairman, Rohan Masakorala, said yesterday.

Colombo International Maritime Conference Organising Committee Chairman Rohan Masakorala presenting a memento to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe with Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake in the background  Pic by Kithsiri De Mel

The Colombo International Logistics conference organized by Colombo International Maritime Conference (CIMC) will go ahead as planned, the organizers told the media at a press conference in Colombo yesterday.

The Indian government is requesting Indian companies to invest in the Colombo Port, Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Y.K. Sinha told a maritime forum in Colombo yesterday.

• Opportunities in an emerging global logistics hub and a shipping centre
• Understand South Asia’s logistics market beyond 2020
• Understanding new technologies in logistics management

The logistics industry is reshaping and evolving its role to facilitate a new order of global trade, e-commerce and to reach out to the 21st century consumer with flexibility and speed, modernising the global supply chains. For this reason, strategic distribution hubs connected by air and sea and proximity to markets and transportation hubs makes a location suitable for international logistics to provide services at minimal costs.

The Indian Government yesterday sought to reassure Sri Lanka that India’s burgeoning investment on developing its ports will pose no threat to the Port of Colombo, noting they have urged Indian companies to invest in the expansion of the Colombo Harbour.
By Madushka Balasuriya