By Roshelle Fernando
The Maldives and Sri Lanka share a common challenge. Both depend heavily on the ocean for their economies, livelihoods, and national security, yet their maritime areas are far larger than their capacity to monitor them continuously. The Maldives, an archipelagic state with an extensive exclusive economic zone (EEZ), relies on the ocean for fisheries and tourism, while Sri Lanka’s surrounding waters are important for trade, fishing, and regional connectivity. These waters are also exposed to challenges such as drug trafficking, illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, human smuggling and environmental degradation. Effective monitoring is therefore essential to protect marine resources, enforce maritime laws and respond to threats at sea.
Technology can help address these challenges by improving the ability to monitor vessels, identify suspicious activity and collect information about marine environments. However, marine protection and maritime security are related but distinct priorities. Marine protection focuses on conserving ecosystems and managing resources, while maritime security concerns threats such as trafficking, illegal fishing, irregular migration, and other unlawful activities at sea. Some technologies can support both objectives, creating opportunities for countries to share knowledge and adapt effective practices. This examines the technologies used in the Maldives, considers their current applications in marine protection and maritime security, and explores how relevant approaches could strengthen Sri Lanka’s maritime protection capabilities.
Marine Protection Technologies in the Maldives
The Maldives uses a combination of surveillance systems and environmental protection measures to address the challenges associated with managing its extensive maritime area. Maritime enforcement is shared among several agencies, including the Marine Police, Customs Marine Department and Immigration Marine Department.
Earlier assistance from India has also played an important role in strengthening Maldivian maritime surveillance. Following an agreement in 2009, India assisted in expanding coastal radar coverage from two atolls to a planned network covering all 26 atolls, with links to India’s coastal surveillance system. Regional cooperation between India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives has further supported maritime information-sharing, vessel tracking, search and rescue, training and responses to illegal activities at sea.
Besides, the Maldives has diversified its foreign partnerships, particularly following the change of government in 2023 and its increased engagement with China. During President Mohamed Muizzu’s visit to Beijing in January 2024, the two countries signed 20 agreements. Meanwhile, Australia donated the Coast Guard vessels and provided personnel training, while Japan supplied patrol-vessel equipment, including marine radar, GPS, and communication devices. Türkiye also strengthened the Maldives’ aerial surveillance capabilities.
Beyond strengthening maritime surveillance, the Maldives has introduced various measures to protect its marine environment and coastal communities. Seawall construction around Malé began in 1988, while the development of Hulhumalé provided additional land for urban expansion and addressed some of the challenges associated with rising sea levels. These initiatives reflect the country’s need to manage coastal erosion, flooding, and limited land availability.
Coral reef conservation is another important aspect of marine protection in the Maldives. Reefs act as natural barriers by reducing wave energy and helping protect coastlines from coastal hazards. Research in North Malé Atoll has demonstrated their role in reducing tsunami energy, while coral degradation can increase wave exposure along the coast. Reef conservation and restoration therefore support both biodiversity and coastal resilience. The Maldives has also established marine protected areas to conserve its marine resources, although the area under protection remains small relative to the country’s extensive exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
Sri Lanka’s Maritime Protection Landscape
Sri Lanka has several institutions responsible for maritime security and protection, including the Sri Lanka Navy, Sri Lanka Coast Guard and Sri Lanka Air Force. The Navy plays a central role in maritime surveillance and defence, while the Coast Guard is responsible for duties such as preventing illegal fishing and enforcing laws at sea. Established under the Coast Guard Act No. 41 of 2009, the Coast Guard was expected to strengthen law enforcement at sea and gradually take on responsibilities traditionally handled by the Navy. However, despite these institutional arrangements, Sri Lanka’s extensive maritime area and search-and-rescue responsibilities remain difficult to monitor with the available personnel and resources.
Sri Lanka has introduced technologies to improve maritime surveillance, including a centralized Automatic Identification System (AIS) network that brings vessel information from 13 selected stations into a single interface. The Navy is also developing its information-sharing and maritime domain awareness capabilities. However, limitations remain, particularly in surveillance. Depends on Air Force support to meet its aerial surveillance requirements, creating gaps between operational needs and available capacity. Financial constraints have further complicated efforts to expand maritime capabilities, highlighting the need to make effective use of existing technology and resources.
These limitations are significant given the range of threats Sri Lanka faces at sea. Drug trafficking, human smuggling, and illegal fishing continue to place pressure on maritime law enforcement. At the same time, coastal erosion and marine environmental degradation threaten coastal communities and economic activities. Research estimates that approximately 45–50% of Sri Lanka’s coastline is affected by erosion, while the coastal zone makes a substantial contribution to the national economy. These challenges demonstrate that maritime protection requires both effective surveillance and stronger environmental monitoring.
Regional cooperation is an important part of Sri Lanka’s response. The country works with India and the Maldives through maritime security arrangements that have developed into broader cooperation under the Colombo Security Conclave. Sri Lanka also participates in regional information-sharing initiatives and capacity-building programmes, including cooperation with the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia Information Sharing Centre (ReCAAP ISC) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime’s Global Maritime Crime Programme. Such partnerships can help Sri Lanka access maritime information, improve personnel training, and strengthen coordination with neighboring countries. Nevertheless, improving the integration of existing systems and addressing gaps in surveillance remain important priorities for strengthening the country’s maritime protection capabilities.
Comparative Insights and Implications
The comparison highlights different strengths and weaknesses. The Maldives has developed extensive radar coverage with external assistance and invested in coastal protection, while Sri Lanka has an established maritime security structure and an existing AIS network. Nevertheless, both countries face constraints in surveillance and coordination.
Their environmental priorities also differ. The Maldives places particular emphasis on sea-level rise, coral reef conservation and coastal resilience, whereas Sri Lanka faces widespread coastal erosion alongside pressure on marine resources. These differences suggest that Sri Lanka should not simply replicate the Maldivian model. Instead, it can adapt relevant technologies and environmental practices to its own geography, institutions and available resources.
Accordingly, three priorities emerge: integrate existing surveillance systems, strengthen ecosystem-based coastal protection, and use regional partnerships to address capability gaps. These priorities inform the following recommendations.
Recommendations for Sri Lanka
- Integrate coastal surveillance systems
The Maldives demonstrates how distributed shore-based radar can improve maritime monitoring across a dispersed territory. Sri Lanka could strengthen its existing AIS network by adding suitable sensors and integrating data from the Navy, Coast Guard, Customs, Fisheries, and port authorities through its developing Information Fusion Centre. Better coordination is as important as acquiring new technology.
- Link ecosystem conservation with coastal protection
Maldivian research shows that coral reefs reduce wave energy, while reef degradation increases coastal exposure. Given Sri Lanka’s coastal erosion challenges, coral reef and mangrove restoration could be incorporated into coastal resilience and disaster-risk reduction programmes. Coastal development should also account for sea-level rise and assess environmental impacts before reclamation or port expansion, drawing lessons from the Maldives’ experience.
- Strengthen fisheries monitoring
Effective fisheries monitoring requires vessel tracking, port inspections and cooperation with fishing communities, rather than patrol vessels alone. Sri Lanka could combine AIS and VMS monitoring with community-based reporting to address illegal fishing, particularly in vulnerable areas such as the Palk Strait.
- Expand regional cooperation
Sri Lanka could make greater use of regional and international partnerships to strengthen maritime information-sharing, training and operational capabilities. The Maldives’ cooperation with Australia, Japan and Türkiye demonstrates how external partnerships can support the development of patrol, surveillance and maritime awareness capabilities. Sri Lanka could explore similar technical cooperation and capacity-building opportunities while strengthening existing regional arrangements, including the Colombo Security Conclave.
- Prioritize integration and training
Given financial constraints and existing shortages in personnel and aerial surveillance, Sri Lanka should prioritize integrating current systems, training analysts, and establishing clear inter-agency procedures before investing in additional platforms. This phased approach could improve the effectiveness of existing resources while gradually addressing capability gaps.
The Maldives offers useful lessons for Sri Lanka in coastal surveillance, ecosystem-based protection and regional cooperation. However, these approaches must be adapted to Sri Lanka’s institutional structure, maritime geography and financial limitations. By integrating existing technologies, strengthening environmental monitoring and making better use of regional partnerships, Sri Lanka can improve maritime protection without relying solely on costly new equipment. Ultimately, effective protection depends not only on the technology available, but also on how well institutions share information and coordinate their responses.
Roshelle Fernando is a Social Media Analyst at Factum, working across social media monitoring, digital research, and current global affairs analysis. She holds a bachelor’s degree with honours in International Relations from the University of Colombo. Her interests include international relations, ocean governance, global affairs, and evolving geopolitical dynamics.
Factum is an Asia Pacific-focused think tank/consultancy on Diplomacy, Tech-Plomacy, Digital and Energy Futures, accessible via www.factum.lk.
The views expressed here are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the organization’s.
