The American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) in Sri Lanka was established in 1992 and counts around 350 member companies today, comprising organisations of all sizes and types.

“As a business chamber, we have to add value to our members and make them feel that we’re the go-to place if anything comes up in their line of business – from understanding tariffs to overcoming challenges concerning trade barriers,” the President of AmCham Sri Lanka Shirendra Lawrence explained, on LMDtv recently.

Discussing the chamber’s role in helping member companies navigate challenges, he commended the resilience of local businesses.

He said: “We talk about the challenges of the last two to four years but we’re used to dealing with these historically – the ‘ethnic conflict,’ the Easter [Sunday] bombs, COVID-19 and more recently, the economic challenges. Sri Lankan businesses have coped well because they understand the importance of moving from growth and expansion modes into survival mode.”

Sri Lankan companies have great potential in the American market with the right amount of support, he believes.

Lawrence explained that Sri Lankan companies “have experience in Europe and many now focus on the US. We first help them gain access to trade statistics for their industry. We also help them understand if there are any tariff barriers that would get in their way – and see if we can open any other doors.”

“We handhold them through the process until they’re comfortable enough to go off on their own,” he added.

The United States is attractive to Sri Lankan companies for many reasons, beginning with scale, as Lawrence noted: “Even if you have a small company, if you’re able to find a niche area for your business in the US, it enables you to scale significantly and so the opportunities are great.”

“Language is another plus and so is maturity – we’ve been dealing with the US for many years and people feel safe. They feel the business relations and governance standards will give them comfort,” he affirmed.

For businesses looking to enter the US market, he recommended moving beyond traditional exports like tea, coconut, rubber and apparel to novel products that haven’t been pursued in the past.

He also urged local companies to capitalise on opportunities arising from changing dynamics in the global market such as the tensions between America and the East – particularly China.

As Lawrence pointed out, “it’s recommended that companies that traditionally sourced from China at least adopt a China Plus One strategy; and maybe in some cases, even move away.”

“Many American organisations may not focus on Sri Lanka since traditionally, they would be looking at Vietnam, India or Malaysia. However, with this tension, there’s around US$ 150 billion in trade that’s likely to migrate out of China. If we could capture a small part of that, it would significantly change our landscape,” he observed.

AmCham Sri Lanka’s President also mentioned Sri Lanka has many appealing factors that make it attractive to the US and other trading destinations: “The benefits and opportunities we offer consistently sit at the top of the list [compared to our regional counterparts], starting with English literacy and the general ease of doing business.”

“Companies feel comfortable coming to a country where they can communicate well. Our communication skills are quite good, and this connects with the country’s literacy levels and education standards,” he elaborated.

Lawrence continued: “And if you’re looking at social and environmental compliance, I think we’ve always been a step ahead of our regional competitors.”

And he believes that Sri Lanka’s tourism offering is the icing on the cake.

“For companies whose trade requires them to spend time in a country, it’s nice to be in one where there are things for you to do over the weekend. We’re quite well-rounded in having good reasons to come here,” he summed up.