The island of Sri Lanka is famous for its delightful splendors. Its golden shores, amazing wildlife together with the charming traditional grandeurs, position Sri Lanka at the peak of global tourism. Simply, many wish to experience this magic themselves. Thus, it is not a secret that millions of visitors arrive in Sri Lanka. Owing to this fact the Sri Lankan tourism had simply reached its pinnacle over the past years. It was in an era as such that the upsurge in COVID-19 took place. Of course, this brought adverse impacts to global tourism. However, the Sri Lankan tourism industry was an instrumental aspect of the Sri Lankan economy as well. Hence, Sri Lanka is now setting plans in popularizing Sri Lanka tourism in the world.
By now, you might feel that this is a challenging task. Indeed, it is! That is the main reason why the Sri Lankan government is working on this from now onwards. Accordingly, the authorities are now setting plans. Their sole intention is to pave the way forward for prospering Sri Lankan tourism. Duly, several discussions recently took place with a number of parties. One of them was with the United Nations. A few days later, another meeting took place between the representatives of the Sri Lankan Ministry of Tourism and the Australian High Commission. This created an opportunity for them to discuss the future of Sri Lankan tourism in detail.
Australian Governments extends their support in popularizing Sri Lanka tourism
This specific meeting between these representatives was held on 16th October 2020. The discussion took place at the Ministry of Tourism. They discussed a number of important aspects of flourishing tourism after the pandemic situation.
Who participated at the meeting?
Prasanna Ranatunga, the Minister of Tourism, participated in the discussion representing the Sri Lankan government. The Australian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Mr.David Holly represented the Australian government. In addition, the following personalities were also present at the meeting.
- Mr.S. Hettiarachchi – Secretary to the Ministry of Tourism
- Mr.Madhava Devasurendra – Secretary to the Ministry of State
- Mr.Danley Cashen – Second Secretary to the Australian High Commission
- Mr.Sivasudhan Ramanathan – Senior Project Officer
The minister explained the Sri Lankan government’s future aims and objectives of tourism from their viewpoint. Meanwhile, the Australian high commissioner enlightened the minister on how they could support the cause. Of course, they discussed a number of important points with regard. Continue reading to get to know more about them.
Highlights about popularizing Sri Lanka Tourism!
The meeting was indeed special. Both parties exchanged their perspectives. The following summaries bring you the main highlights.
Highlights from the party of the Sri Lankan government
At first, the minister detailed the objectives of the Sri Lankan tourism ministry. Duly, he revealed that they aim to have at least 7 million tourists each year. If so, this adds an annual income of US $ 10 billion to the national economy. However, the failure of achieving these targets during 2020 is not a wonder. Still, the motive of the Sri Lankan government is to achieve them amidst the pandemic travel trends. So, the minister explained how they are setting plans to reach their objectives in the next few years.
Further, he also made a special mention about the need of popularizing Sri Lanka tourism in the post-pandemic world. Accordingly, the government is ready to bring up Sri Lanka as a safer destination. They are taking steps to regulate the industry with health measures. Moreover, they are contributing to uplift service providers. With all these initiatives, they are trying to resume the tourism industry in Sri Lanka, better and bolder.
Highlights from the party of the Australian High Commission
In response, the Australian High Commissioner expressed that a good number of Australians are willing to visit this island. Further, he also mentioned that Australian investors would find it a good opportunity to invest in a country like Sri Lanka. And the special fact is, the commissioner promised to extend their fullest support in popularizing the Sri Lankan tourism industry. Further, he raised the point that their special focus is not only upon developing Sri Lankan Tourism but also flourishing its investment sector. Apart from that, the commissioner mentioned that they are continuing to support the current active enterprise development project in the Eastern Province. Accordingly, the Australian government is expecting to allocate 25M Australian Dollars for this project next year. In addition, he also brought up that they are willing to implement special projects for the women and youth of that area.
The Final Note
After all, what Sri Lankan is planning is indeed challenging. Still, the government’s strategies to prosper the industry is indeed thoughtful. However, it is obvious that Sri Lanka is not the only nation that is facing this decline. Thus, this is a cause that demands partnerships, collaborations, and friendly support. Hence, the government’s strategy in reaching the improvements through multi-stakeholder participation happens to be a key feature with regard. Moreover, the government is focusing on future travel behaviors and future demands. Also, they are considering future operational challenges. Hence, we can hope that these plans would dawn a new era of Sri Lankan Tourism very soon.
Apart from that, the friendship between Australia and Sri Lanka is more than 70 years strong. Throughout history, they have supported each other on several occasions. May it be the natural disasters, or may it be the easter attack. Australia was always there, lending their friendly hands. Thus, we believe that their support in tourism would be amazing as well. With all their support and the strategic plans, let’s look forward to a flourished tourism industry!
