About 72% of Sri Lanka’s micro, small and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) exporters use e-commerce, according to a survey report launched in Colombo on 8 October.
The report, by ODI Global and the Sri Lanka Association for Software and Services Companies (SLASSCOM), covers 953 exporters and importers, about 9% of the country’s trading firms. The survey ran from October 2025 to February 2026.
About 80% of exporters selling online reported difficulty with complex documentation. Most export shipments take more than two weeks to reach the buyer, and firms also cited high costs and delays in customs, logistics and payments.
The report calls for coordinated reform across the digital trade system rather than efforts to persuade firms to go online.
Deputy Minister of Digital Economy Eranga Weeraratne said the priority is an enabling environment, with simpler trade processes, stronger digital infrastructure and logistics, and the skills to compete globally.
For small Sri Lankan businesses, the findings point to paperwork and delivery times as the main obstacles to selling abroad.
