Hospitality industry veteran Peter Ducker says SL’s future rosy

Institute of Hospitality Sri Lanka International Branch Secretary Sugath Illangakoon, Institute of Hospitality UK Chief Executive Peter Ducker, Institute of Hospitality Sri Lanka Chairman Sidath Kodikara, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority Chairman Paddy Withana and Institute of Hospitality Sri Lanka International Branch Treasurer Eraj Abeywardane – Pix by Upul Abayasekara

By Charumini de Silva

Peter Ducker, an international hospitality industry veteran who’s currently on a visit to Sri Lanka, said he was upbeat about the country’s future.

“Being an island nation, from beaches, to historic places, to wild life, to anything - Sri Lanka has everything to attract any type of tourist to this beautiful country. There is no doubt, the future of Sri Lanka is indeed rosy,” he added. 

Ducker, the CEO of the Institute of Hospitality (IH) made these remarks at a press briefing hosted by the Sri Lankan branch of the institute in Colombo recently.

He stated: “If Sri Lanka could employ 800,000 in the tourism industry by 2020 would be an incredible achievement. Bear in mind, 800,000 employees in the tourism industry also means many thousands more working in other related supply chains. This will create a tremendous opportunity to boost the economy of Sri Lanka,” he pointed out.   

Ducker paid this visit to Sri Lanka in a gesture of recognition of the service carried out by its international branch here in Colombo. He has contributed towards shaping the future of the hospitality through the Institute of Hospitality, which has united professionals by promoting excellence and facilitating learning for more than 70 years.    

According to him the biggest challenge Sri Lanka face at present and the one which as an industry can do most about is providing skilled people to serve and maintain in the hotels and restaurants as long as they can. 

He said it was important to promote lifelong professional learning no matter what level of industry a worker is in or has reached. 

Noting there has been so much development in tourism and hospitality since his last visit in 2013, he added that the hospitality industry is expanding rapidly and the rate on development and investment is tremendous. 

“The key here is to invest in people and training on a continuous basis. I learn every day, I discover more on a daily basis because the industry is moving fast with the technology revolution,” he asserted.

With fast evolving technology, industry is also advancing at the same pace. “There are no longer voice calls for hotel reservations and it is all through online mechanisms,” he added.

He said the Institute of Hospitality’s role is to promote hospitality education and support its members as a fast growing industry needs skilled and passionate individuals devoted to delivering the high standards that international travellers expect.

Ducker assured the Institute of Hospitality qualifications would provide the pathway for youth to enter the highly potential industry. 

In addition, he said the entry of leading world class hotel chains into Sri Lanka would involve the local workforce, providing a tremendous opportunity to boost the economy in numerous ways.   

Ducker’s visit will span a week-long expedition where he will also have the opportunity to impart his knowledge and expertise by attending a few of the Institute’s events which will be held in Kandy, Waskaduwa, Colombo, Negombo as well as in the north and east of Dambulla. 

Sri Lanka Tourism Chairman Paddy Withana said the country is facing three major problems, such as power, water and human capital due to industrialisation, adding that the most hit sector of this is the tourism industry. 

With insufficient human capital to cater to the rising demand, Withana called on the Institute of Hospitality to encourage people to join the industry, without limiting itself to training. 

“This was one of the reasons why Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management (SLITHM) embarked on a two month crash program, where youth will be encouraged to join the trade immediately,” he stated.

Withana said the industry must look at Shangri-La Hambantota as a benchmark on how they have invested in training the local community. 

“Institute of Hospitality is one of the key institutes we hope to work closely with in capacity building in the next couple of years and I hope that we can face the challenge of finding the right talent to cater to this rising demand by 2020,” he said.

He also added that Government has proposed many incentives for private sector companies who are setting up training facilities.  

According to data there had been a steady increase in tourist arrivals and average tourist spending has helped increase tourist earnings for Sri Lanka by 22.6%. Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals increased by 13.7% in October this year, compared to the same period last year, exceeding 1.6 million tourist arrivals.

Institute of Hospitality in Sri Lanka Chairman Sidath Kodikara said Ducker arrived in Sri Lanka at a crucial time when the institute has seen growth in leaps and bounds, while the industry as a whole is at the brink of a take-off. 

“Our country is expected to increase the number of total hotel rooms to a level above 80,000 taking the total number of employees working in the tourism sector up to 800,000 by 2020. This is by no means a modest growth and we require support from professionals of the calibre of Peter Ducker to bring our services up to mark with our professionals,” he added.