Sri Lanka needs to attract high spending tourists

The University of Colombo organised on 5 October at BMICH the tourism leaders’ conference titled ‘Integration of Global Value Chains for Sustainable Tourism Development: Way Forward for Sri Lanka Tourism: Together Sri Lanka Tourism for All’. 

ICCSL Chairman Dinesh Weerakkody moderated the session while other panel members were Metro Jets/Jet Aviatio Managing Director/CEO Gary Dolski, Emirates Academy of Hospitality Management Director Innovation and Research Prof. Sanjaya Nadkarni, Dusit Thani/Dusit Education – Thailand Group Managing Director Lars Eltvik, Media Consulta International Holding A.G. CEO Harald Zulauf, SriLankan Airlines Ltd. Chairman Ranjit Fernando, Commonwealth Fashion Council Founding Member Ajai Vir Singh, Immigration Controller Nihal Ranasinghe and Alston Koch.

It was pointed out that when compared to its neighbours Sri Lanka boasts a most enviable variety in sights and attraction. Wildlife safaris, exotic marine life, beautiful sandy beaches, cosy cold climate escapes, deep sea diving, ancient ruins. Yet Sri Lanka’s promotion abroad is very limited when compared to the work that countries with far less to offer put in.

One of the key problems repeatedly highlighted by the industry is the lack of accurate data. For years, the Government has been releasing numbers that do not differentiate between the formal and informal sectors adequately enough to understand how many foreigners are tourists, where they stay, how much they spend, and their level of expectations. Without in-depth data, policymakers cannot understand the direction the industry should take, which affects the entire value chain.

Furthermore, the protection of its natural resources has been woefully inadequate. SriLankan Chairman Ranjit Fernando noted that Sri Lanka tourism and the national carrier should jointly promote the destination.