Inclusive approach necessary to draft new Tourism Act

With the Cabinet having already granted approval to draft a new Tourism Act, the Government is now poised to revise the prevailing Tourism Act of 2005. Certain sections of the tourism industry have expressed doubts about the move as some within the private sector speculate that the new piece of legislation would create cumbersome and unwarranted bureaucracy. However, policymakers of the Government had assured the process of legislation would involve extensive engagement with multiple stakeholders of the industry from the private sector.

Although the prevailing Act was enacted in 2005, it came into implementation only in 2007. It was alleged that the then Tourism Minister Anura Bandaranaike refrained from issuing the gazette notification pertaining to the Act. Some accused the late politician of deliberately delaying the implementation of the legislation due to pressures from certain sections of the hitherto Ceylon Tourist Board (which was dissolved when the existing act replaced the Ceylon Tourist Board Act No. 10 of 1966). Nevertheless, Bandaranaike’s successor Milinda Moragoda issued the gazette in 2007. Operational challenges of creating four separate institutions earmarked by the 2005 Act would have contributed towards the delay too. The prominence given to the private sector by the current law was resisted by certain influential sections associated with the ruling political administration at that time.

The legislative enactment in 2005 gave birth to four institutions regarding development, promotion, convention, and training associated with the tourism industry. According to reports, the proposed legislation aims to consolidate the four entities into one institutional mechanism called the National Tourism Commission while including more SME-related representatives of the industry to the decision-making body of the proposed Commission.

In the past, moves to reform the two-decade-old law had attracted strong opposition from powerful industry groups associated with the sector. When there were efforts to reform the Act during the tenure of Kimarli Fernando – who led all the four tourism-related institutions during the Presidency of Gotabaya Rajapaksa – prominent industry associations publicly expressed their displeasure. Moreover, they conveyed reservations with regard to accommodating representatives of SME-oriented associations in the industry.

The associations had also been lukewarm about amalgamating the different institutions as they believe the four institutions – the he 4 institutions - the viewt institutions  the industry.ngg of Gotabaya Rajapaksa -Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Sri Lanka Convention Bureau and Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hospitality Management – cater to the different sectors, segments and different needs of the tourism industry. Instead, the industry urged authorities to explore the possibility of merging the back office functions to realise cost savings. 

On the other hand, observers have pointed out that having four different structures for the tourism industry cause wastage, lack of coordination as well as inefficiency. They believe that one umbrella organisation is vital to streamline the development of the industry. The proposed legislative framework must also attempt to resolve the bottlenecks caused by the current financial and operational guidelines of the Government.

Meanwhile, last month, a high-level Presidential Task Force was established to spearhead the implementation of the five-year Sri Lanka Tourism Development Program. The mechanism will act as the central coordinating and decision-making body for tourism, uniting various Government agencies and private sector representatives to drive the growth of the industry. Unfortunately, such centralised arrangements in the past have caused unwarranted interruptions even though they were created with good intentions.

As Deputy Minister of Tourism Prof. Ruwan Ranasinghe has rightfully observed, the existing law should not be repealed in a hurry. The present environment of the country, characterised by heightened political and economic stability, provides the ideal foundation to transform the dimension of the tourism industry. In such a backdrop, disagreements between the private sector and the Government in addition to conflicts among segments within the industry need to be avoided. Hence, an inclusive and participatory process is critical to draft a new act which would resolve the shortcomings within the present legal framework. howsknowledged the necessity to overcome with the sector.erful industry groups tutional mechanism calledtration at that time.