ECONOMYNEXT – A $1 million fund from the United Nations to carry out a comprehensive marine scientific survey in Sri Lanka’s shallow coastal waters is at a stake due to delay in the government’s effort to come up with Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to accommodate foreign research vessels, official sources said.
The previous Sri Lankan government in 2021 requested the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the UN to conduct the survey following some strong benefits to the island nation after a similar survey in 2018.
However, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s government has yet to give approval for the move, despite repeated UN requests from the island nation’s Foreign Ministry.
Sri Lanka’s one-year moratorium over foreign research vessels ended in December last year.
That moratorium was imposed by Sri Lanka’s previous government amid pressure by India and the United States over Chinese vessels coming for research purposes.
Both QUAD members pressed Sri Lanka after two Chinese research vessels came to the island nation within 14 months.
Dissanayake-led government’s cabinet in January decided to appoint a new committee to review the existing SOP and come up with a new SOP on the visits of all the foreign research ships.
Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath in January said the committee, under his leadership, will come up with the criteria which we should consider when these ships come to Sri Lankan waters.
DELAY IN SOP
However, that committee is yet to be established.
“The government is yet to establish the committee to formulate the SOP to allow foreign research vessels into Sri Lanka waters,” a Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry official told EconomyNext.
“Once we have the SOP in place, we should be able to give clearance.”
The UN funding for the survey estimated at $1 million will be ceased if it is not used as scheduled.
Two sources who are aware of the UN’s repeated request to the Foreign Ministry said the vessel scheduled to be used in the survey, Fridtjof Nansen, is a state-of-the-art vessel equipped to support partner countries in sustainable management of marine ecosystems and aquatic resources.
The vessel is operated through a partnership between the FAO of the UN and national governments and it plays a vital role in assisting partner countries through their marine institutes to gain urgent insights into the health of the marine ecosystem and protect biodiversity while helping ensure long-term food security from the sea.
With advanced technology on board, the vessel helps uncover the health, abundance, and dynamics of life below water, guiding decisions for responsible ocean stewardship, the sources said.
COMPREHENSIVE RESEARCH
The Nansen Programme is scheduled to carry out a comprehensive marine scientific survey in Sri Lanka’s shallow coastal waters from 15 July to 20 August 2025.
Sri Lanka has already witnessed five similar UN-led surveys since 1970s and the last one was in 2018 study, conducted after a 40-year gap.
The 2018 survey, sources said delivered urgently needed insights into the health of Sri Lanka’s marine ecosystems.
However, its findings now require updating to guide decisive policy and management actions, the sources said.
The 2025 survey is “urgently necessary and nationally strategic”, one source said.
The source said the survey could help Sri Lanka in safeguarding fish stocks and ensuring food security, diversifying through new and underutilized marine resources, ensuring safe and nutritious seafood, maintaining and expanding export market access, and protecting marine biodiversity and ecosystems among many others.
The previous government wanted to come up with an SOP which would ensure all foreign vessels to work with a local partner on marine research while building the capacity of such local teams along with navy personnel. However, it was reveal its SOP before lost the September 2025 polls.
GEOPOLITICS
Sri Lanka is facing diplomatic challenges in allowing foreign research vessels within its waters due to geopolitical issues related to India and China.
Sri Lanka and China have agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on maritime cooperation amid Indian concerns over Chinese research ships visiting the Indian Ocean.
In April, Sri Lanka signed a Defence Cooperation MOU which said both neighbour countries will exchange information in maritime and other domains on mutual consent without elaborating.
Foreign Minister Herath in January said Sri Lanka does not have to take approval from India or inform the neighbour on visit of any foreign vessels. Government officials have said some previous governments have maintained such practices to maintain better relationships with India. (Colombo/June 12/2025)
