The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected the outlook of global maritime trade and the global economy. Being part of the global supply chain we are no exception. In order to ensure continuous operation. the Port of Colombo initiated a key project as a resilience response to the pandemic to ensure the safety and security of the port community so that the supply chain stays uninterrupted. The main objectives of the project included:
- Creating and Ensuring safety and security of the Port community
- Enhancing the Knowledge of the employees on Covid prevention
- Ensuring continuous operations in the port
- Eliminating any interruptions for the cargo supply chain
- Minimizing physical contact so that the infection risk is minimized
Through a series of dedicated actions, including provision of guidance, introduction of work shifts, establishment of an operations center, enhancing digitalization, and setting up a vaccination program for employees, the Port of Colombo managed to contain the impact of the pandemic to its workforce and overall operations.
The project provided a quick response to the pandemic and brought the port operations back to normal levels. The benefits were reaped by the port employees and all port users. Most importantly, the Port of Colombo managed to operate continuously thereafter without any delays and backlogs so that the maritime supply chain was not interrupted.