SL’s export sector credibility on the brink

With the rising fuel and power crises engulfing the entire country, international customers are losing credibility in the ability to deliver by Sri Lanka’s export sector.

Shortage of fuel and power is leading to delays in meeting the deadlines, while there is no confidence that the government is promising to take any immediate solutions to curtail the problem.

Around 15 export sector chambers and associations held a joint media briefing on Monday at the Renuka Hotel in Colombo to discuss the upcoming problems the export sector is facing during these challenging times.

One of the exporters stressed that not all equipment in a factory could run with the aid of a generator, while not all production and manufacturing plants could be kept shut down for more than seven hours. “The government did not have to wait for this long for a crisis to occur and then take baby steps to find solutions,” an exporter noted.

An apparel exporter pointed out that the fuel shortage has a massive impact on exports due to transportation delays while disruptions are happening from one end to another. “Sri Lanka has built a reputation of delivering on time to the global importers. And if we don’t meet their demands now, there are other markets waiting to grab the opportunity and break businesses from Sri Lanka. This could be the worst of all to happen where exports have been growing from year 2020 to 2021.”

(RM)