Sri Lanka to take steps to improve indoor air quality

Colombo, Feb 21 (newsin.asia) – Sri Lanka’s Central Environmental Authority will formulate a set of guidelines to improve indoor air quality in an effort to minimize health impacts caused by air pollutants, local media reported Thursday.

The Cabinet of Ministers last week approved a three year pilot project from 2019 to 2021 to conduct a base study and set guidelines to improve indoor air quality in schools, hospitals, public buildings, office buildings and houses covering the entire country, Central Environmental Authority Laboratory Services Deputy Director, Hiranthi Jansz said.

Jansz said household wood-burning stoves, use of incense sticks, poorly maintained office air-conditioned environments and vehicle emissions were frequent instances of indoor air pollution.

She pointed out that the World Health Organization had recommended preparing guidelines for indoor air quality.

“Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) is a growing concern. Most people spend about 90 percent of their time indoors. The quality of indoor air is important not only for occupants’ comfort but also for their health,” the ITI Environmental Technology said in a statement.

“Poor indoor air quality has been tied to symptoms like headaches, fatigue, trouble in concentrating, and irritation of the eyes, nose, throat and lungs. Also, some specific diseases have been linked to specific air contaminants or indoor environments, like asthma with damp indoor environments,” the ITI added.

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150 Sri Lankans get Mahatma Gandhi scholarship

Colombo, February 21 (AIR): In Sri Lanka, 150 students from all 25 districts were awardedthe prestigious Mahatma Gandhi scholarships for study in India.

Sri Lankan education minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam and Indian High Commissioner Taranjit Singh Sandhu gave the scholarships at a special ceremony held in Colombo on Wednesday.

This is the twelfth year in continuation that India has provided Mahatma Gandhi scholarships to bright students across Sri Lanka.

The minister appreciated the assistance provided by India including for the new trilingual school in Polonnaruwa and Saraswathy College in Kandy.

He also thanked India for providing training to teachers in Sri Lanka. High commissioner of India said that it was special occasion where 150 Sri Lankan students were awarded the Mahatma Gandhi scholarships while the world is celebrating the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

He urged the students in Sri Lanka to connect with the youth of India and told them to take advantage of scientific and educational developments in India.

The high commissioner noted that India has recently launched a new Portal titled “Study in India” and more than 25000 seats are earmarked in Indian Institutions for foreign students.

He expressed hope that Sri Lankan youth would make full use of the opportunities in India.

(The featured image at the top is that of Indian High Commissioner Taranjit Singh Sandhu addressing the scholarship holders)

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Sri Lanka to identify tourism development zones to boost arrivals

Colombo, Feb 21 (newsin.asia) – The Sri Lankan government will identify tourism development zones throughout the island which will concentrate on tourism related activities, a statement from the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) said here Thursday.

The SLTDA embarked on a mutual partnership with the the Urban Development Authority (UDA) to identify the zones which will be set up to avoid ad-hoc tourism development and to avoid undesirable activities.

The zones are likely to be set up in places such as the central highlands of Ella and Nuwara Eliya and Arugam Bay, Kalpitiya, Beruwala, Hikkaduwa and Pinnawala. These areas are popular tourist areas.

“Sri Lanka has been identified as one of the fast-emerging tourist destinations in the South Asian Region. The island’s biodiversity, long lasted culture, historic monuments, exotic beaches, and evergreen environment can be identified as the key attractions for international tourists,” the SLTDA said in the statement.

“However, with the increased tourist arrivals various tourism related or associated activities are mushrooming in around popular tourist destinations. Most of these activities are developed in an irresponsible manner in the absence of proper development guidelines in existing and emerging tourism hubs,” the SLTDA added.

Such developments put invaluable cultural and natural assets at severe risk of degradation. At the same time, there are other locations, of which the potentials have yet to be properly explored for the development of tourism-related activities, the SLTDA further said.

Since the end of the island’s 30 year civil conflict between government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels, which ended in May 2009, Sri Lanka has emerged as one of the leading travel destinations in the world.

Last year, Sri Lanka received 2.3 million tourists while this year it is aiming to welcome 3 million tourists.

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Sri Lanka the cynosure at Thai Travel Fair

The 2019 edition of the Thai International Travel Fair was held in Bangkok, Thailand last week. The inauguration was held at the Bangkok Convention Center at Central World Bangkok followed by a gala dinner at Centara Grand. The event was attended by over 500 tourism stakeholders from around the world including Sri Lanka.

The Chief Guest at the inauguration was the Tourism Minister of Thailand while the Guest of Honour was the Tourism Minister of Sri Lanka, John Amaratunga who received an enthusiastic welcome from the capacity crowd that was present.

Later on Minister Amaratunga declared opened the Sri Lanka Booth, which was the cynosure at the travel fair. Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau made use of the opportunity to launch a promotional microsite highlighting the Buddhist trail in Sri Lanka. The microsite consists of the main Buddhist tourism attractions in the country, meditation centres and facilities available to learn Buddhism in Sri Lanka. 

The microsite was launched by Minister Amaratunga along with Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Thailand, Kshenuka Seneviratne, President of the Thai Travel Agents Association, Thanaphon Cheewarattanaporn and Chairman, Tourism Advisory Committee, Harry Jayawardena.

Meanwhile Minister Amaratunga and the Sri Lankan delegation met President of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, Vichat Prakobgosol on the sidelines of the Travel Fair.

The two parties discussed ways and means of increasing the number of arrivals to Sri Lanka from Thailand. Thai travel agents emphasised that relaxation of visa requirements will help increase arrivals. The Thai travel agents pointed out that outbound traffic from Thailand to Japan increased by over one million when Japan granted visa on arrival to Thai nationals.

Launch of Buddhist Trail micro website

Minister John Amaratunga speaking at the launch of Buddhist trail

Launch of the Sri Lanka booth

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Sri Lankan tourism; all that glitters is not gold

Tourism in Sri Lanka was said to have reached an all-time high last year with a staggering 2.2 million tourists visiting the country. While news articles widely publicised this never before seen rate, little did anyone pay attention to return in investment and surge in local sales brought by these tourists. 

Most of the tourists visiting the country spend less than $ 500 a week – bringing very little income and indirect employment to our locals, which in turn does not contribute to our economy drastically. So what seems to be the issue here despite having a never before seen rate of tourists pour into Sri Lanka to enjoy our sandy beaches? Let’s dig a bit deeper into the issue. 

Digging deeper into the root cause

Whilst it’s important that Sri Lanka has a steady inflow of tourists, our legislative and other bodies do not pay attention to the type of tourists that visit the country. There has been a growing increase in budget hotels and other budget accommodations both in and out of Colombo, and this number only seems to be in the rising. Although the industry must cater to all levels of tourists, our tourism sector must pay special attention to bring down tourists with higher spending power as this is where the real sales and surge in our economy lies. 

In the past few years there has been a surge in many accommodations coming up in the North, Central Highlands, South and the Cultural Triangle of Sri Lanka. Almost 80% of these hotels have room rates below $ 90 for double half-board basis. Additionally, more and more hotels are coming up in these regions simply because owners find this lucrative market attractive and get into business either because they were advised by a friend or saw someone do well in the same trade. 

Diving headfirst into ventures without a proper plan

This isn’t healthy for hotels, banks and the Sri Lankan economy as there needs to be a substantial financial and business knowledge and planning put into a venture. The business will find it very hard in the long run to pay back their bank loans as it will take them between 10-12 years to breakeven whereas a hotel with a good business and financial model will breakeven between 5-7 years; simply because there was no solid financial plan at the inception therefore having a painful effect on the growth of the business. 

Tourists visiting Sri Lanka with lesser spending power, are not contributing to the growth of our economy. With a tourist spending less than $ 500 a week by cutting down on food, travel and any other possible expense whilst opting to stay at budget hotels, their actions are not helping indirect employment opportunities to grow. With foreigners choosing to either back-pack or choose low cost travel options like travelling by bus in town or train for long distances, they are not providing our local tuk tuk drivers and cab services indirect employment. 

Time for hotels to step up and improve their game

In addition to the majority of tourists Sri Lanka attracts, hotels too must take a step up and improve their services. Hotels can no longer rely on their restaurants and buffets to help make profits, as this accounts only up to 40% of the total sale. Hotels must focus on the remaining 60% that is the real value addition; accommodation services. However our fiscal standing doesn’t make higher priced hotel a beguiling destination for the cadre of tourists we attract. With 30% of a tax charged (with a breakdown of 10% Service Charge, 15% Value Added Tax &2% Nation Building Tax) in addition to the normal rates, tourists and locals alike are disheartened to yield a higher spending power. 

Corrective measures 

In order for Sri Lanka to attract the right kind of tourists which will in turn positively affect our economy and help our nation grow and provide our locals with direct and indirect employment, Sri Lanka must look into developing infrastructure and providing higher valued goods to attract the right level of clientele. Await to find out how Sri Lanka can facilitate an economic surge during our next publication. 

(The writer is an accountant by profession turned Head of Operations. He possesses over 29 years of expertise in the hospitality industry including 20 years of strong financial administration at five-star hotels. His expertise is spread throughout his various stints in various regions around the world including USA, The Caribbean, Middle East and Singapore as well as holding the position of an operation and commercial oriented Director of Finance, with a wealth of business experience. He is a highly result oriented professional, who believes in cohesive work environments and team work. He is now retired and consults professionally to a leading international consulting firm, whilst residing in his home in Colombo.)

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Tourism industry grows by 2.2% in January

COLOMBO (News 1st) – Data released by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka shows that tourism earnings have increased by 2.2% in January 2019.

The data reveals the country earned nearly USD 458.4mn in January this year, compared to USD 448.5mn during January last year(2018).

Sri Lanka welcomed nearly 244,239 tourists in January 2019, indicating an increase of 2.2% from last year’s 238,924.

In 2019, the Sri Lankan tourism industry expects to attract more than 3 mn foreign tourists as Sri Lanka is ranked number 1 destination to visit in 2019 by Lonely Planet.

To achieve above-mentioned target Sri Lanka needs a growth rate of 28.5% on average. However, the current growth rate is at 2.2%.

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Sri Lanka's Tourism sector achieves US$ 4.4 billion revenue target

Jan 19, Colombo: Sri Lanka has earned over US$ 4.4 billion from tourism this year with revenue steadily increased by 11.6 percent compared to 2017, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) said.

According to the SLTDA, the data suggests that an average duration of stay per person is 11 days in Sri Lanka while average expenditure is approximately 2000 U.S dollars.

The Industry expectations for 2019 are 3 million tourist arrivals and revenue of 5 billion U.S dollars with lonely planet naming Sri Lanka as the Number one destination to travel in 2019.

India, China, and Britain have managed to remain as the leading markets throughout the year in 2018 as well.

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Kishu Gomes appointed Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority

Kishu Gomes will be officially appointed as the Chairman of Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority and Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau today, Tourism Development Ministry said.

Accordingly, Minister John Amaratunga is to present the letter of appointment to him this afternoon.

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sl Tourism to streamline promotion activities

Sri Lanka Tourism has kick started their promotional campaign for 2019 and around 15% of the budget has already been exhausted so far, said Director, Marketing at Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Madubhani Perera. The total budget for 2019 is around Rs. 6 billion.

She said that most of the promotion budget was invested to participate in international fairs in 2019. Perera said that last year the sum allocated for tourism Promotion was around Rs. 5 billion but only around 75% of it was used.

Meanwhile Minister of Tourism Development, Wildlife and Christian Affairs, John Amaratunga said that a proposal has been made to the cabinet to offer Visa on Arrival to tourists from Thailand.

“I am returning from an event in Thailand and their tourists are keen to visit Sri Lanka. Thai nationals are offered free visa on arrival to travel within the ASIAN region. I proposed to the cabinet to offer similar facility for them when visiting Sri Lanka.”

The Minister said that though they were targeting 3 million arrivals for 2019, if there were no political issues in Sri Lanka, this target can reach up to 3.1 million. He said that already there is a 2.2% arrival growth in January as against the previous year. 

Speaking at an event jointly organized by Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators and Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) the Minister said that this year Sri Lanka will play host to many MICE events and the biggest would be the United Nations event in March where over 3,000 delegates would participate.

He however said that successive governments have not taken serious measures to increase capacity at the Colombo airport and this has put a check on many new budget airlines that want to fly to Sri Lanka.

“There is a huge congestion at the immigration counters and steps should be taken to offer one separate lane for Sri Lankans which would speed up matters at Customs,” he said.

The Minister also said that two former Vice Presidents of Sri Lankan Tourism Promotions Bauru, Nilmin Nanayakkara and Mervyn Fernandopulle were exonerated of all charges and this proves that the judiciary is impartial.

“Both of them did not make any decisions or even take any favors while serving in the SLTBP. They merely placed their signatures on Board decisions.”

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Harnessing the real potential of tourism industry

After much drama, a new head has been installed at the country’s tourism establishment. Corporate leader Kishu Gomes on Monday assumed duties as Chairman of both the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority and Sri Lanka Tourism Promotions Bureau (SLTPB). 

During a press conference last Friday, Gomes promised bringing in at least three million tourists to Sri Lanka this year. The country achieved 2.3 million tourists in 2018, about 200,000 short of the target, which was originally set. 

Although Sri Lanka has achieved considerable growth in the tourism industry, in terms of tourist arrivals and earnings in the post-war period, it has been far from the country’s true potential, which was recently named the best destination to travel in 2019 by the world-renowned travel guidebook brand Lonely Planet.

Gomes is a proven business leader in Sri Lanka’s thriving private sector and has over three decades of experience at top management positions. He is probably one of the youngest Sri Lankans to ever head the local operations of a multinational company. The added advantage is that he has a strong marketing background. 

Last week, he proudly told the media that his DNA is marketing and brand communication. The experience and strategies of Gomes as a marketer could become invaluable for the long-delayed global marketing campaign of Sri Lanka tourism. The Tourism Development, Wildlife and Christian Religious Affairs Ministry last week said they would soon present a detailed plan of the said campaign to the Cabinet, after incorporating the views of Gomes.

The soft launch of the campaign is scheduled to take place at the world’s largest tourism trade fair, ITB Berlin, this March. The three-year campaign, which received the SLTPB board approval recently, will focus on promoting Sri Lanka tourism in eight key source markets, with an estimated budget of Rs.3.0 billion.

Sri Lanka has been feeling the need for a proper destination marketing campaign for a while. But the initiatives taken towards it at various times under several tourism ministers were impeded by the country’s toxic politics and procurement scandals.

This probably is the best juncture in Sri Lanka Tourism’s history to launch a massive promotional campaign as the country’s governance structure remains relatively strong and the civil society’s ability to influence the politics is high. 

However, it is vital to come to a consensus on how to position Sri Lanka as a tourism destination before embarking on a major marketing push. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on several occasions had said given Sri Lanka’s limited carrying capacity, the country should look at attracting high-end tourists, who spend a considerable amount of money during their stays. 

However, given the rising number of informal accommodation providers, it is clear that Sri Lanka is becoming more of a backpackers’ paradise than a sojourn for high-spending tourists. It is believed that Sri Lanka’s vibrant informal tourism sector played a major role in the country being selected as the best place to travel in 2019 by Lonely Planet. 

Hence, the tourism authorities and the industry should reach a consensus as soon as possible on where to position Sri Lanka as a tourism destination, to give a clear message out to the prospective tourists. Every country that recognizes tourism as a major contributor to its economy must have a tourism identity and Sri Lanka shouldn’t be an exception, despite its diverse tourism product offering. 

It is essential that Sri Lanka creates itself a fine balance between high-spending tourists and backpackers and all the country’s promotional and marketing campaigns should revolve around this notion.

Meanwhile, a proposal has been pushed forward by a group of hospitality sector stakeholders urging the authorities to consider giving the country’s tourism industry the export industry status. Even at the height of the separatist war, the tourism industry was able to attract tourists to the country and earn the much-needed foreign exchange to the economy. 

When the tsunami wrecked havoc in the southern and eastern coasts of Sri Lanka, the industry was able to rise from wreckage within a very short time, showing its resilience. Hence, the government should seriously look at including tourism into its export strategy and provide the necessary concession, similar to the other export industries.

Also, the suggestion to establish tourism trade zones, similar to that of export processing zones, could also be a very innovative approach to develop some of the underdeveloped tourism hot spots in the eastern and northern parts of the island.

All in all, what is needed as far as the country’s tourism sector is concerned, is a new approach—be it promoting the country through a global marketing campaign or providing the industry with the much-needed impetus by recognizing their efforts throughout the years. 

One thing we should always keep in mind as Sri Lankans is that worker remittances still remain the highest foreign exchange earner, despite the country having such potential for tourism. Isn’t this anything short of a national embarrassment? 

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Sri Lanka Tourism roadshow in Chandigarh ends on high note

The Sri Lanka Tourism roadshow in Chandigarh, organized by the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB), has concluded on a high note with attendance of approximately 150 respected guests and dignitaries, not just from Chandigarh but also from neighboring cities like Ludhiana, Karnal, and others. The event started with B2B meetings, followed by presentations by the Tourism Promotion Bureau and SriLankan Airlines.

The event was attended by Ms. Upekkha Samaratunga, Minister (Commercial) for the Sri Lanka High Commission in New Delhi; Mr. Viranga Bandara, Assistant Director of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau; Mr. Chinthaka Weerasinghe, Manager- Northern India of SriLankan Airlines; and other respected dignitaries. The roadshow in Chandigarh is a part of Sri Lanka Tourism’s 7-city roadshow in India, and Chandigarh is the first city in this series.

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Mr. Sutheash Balasubramaniam, Managing Director of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, shared with media: “Sri Lanka has gained popularity and has experienced robust growth in India. We are organizing these events to explore the unique island of hospitable people to woo travel agents and increase flow of Indians from Chandigarh .The road show would enhance the visibility among the travel, trade, and consumers to position Sri Lanka as the preferred destination in Asia. Ramayana Trail sites widely scattered across the country will be of unique experience, particularly to Indians. We are confident that in 2019 a lot of more Indians will choose Sri Lanka as their preferred holiday destination.”

He further said that currently, Sri Lanka Tourism is exploring new kinds of promotions similar to that of the ongoing MasterCard campaign. Plans are underway to jointly work with airlines and tour operators to promote the destination more aggressively. The participants from Sri Lanka included Apple Holidays, Jetwing Travels (Pvt) Ltd., Asian Adventure Travel Management company, HTCEY Leisure Pvt Ltd., Walkers Tours Limited, Hamoos Travels, Karusan Travels, Luxe Asia, Green Holiday Center, Riu Hotel & Resorts, Bernard Tours (Pvt) Ltd., Lanka Reisen Ceylon (Private) Limited, Exotic Global Holidays, Esna Holidays Pvt Ltd., B.O.C. Travels (Pvt) Ltd., and Travelwind Holiday Pvt Ltd., along with Sri Lanka Tourism officials and SriLankan Airlines’ officials who showcased unique tourism offerings, latest developments, and exclusive products for the India market.

Chandigarh is one of the most important cities in terms of the outbound tourism market of India and has one of the highest per capita incomes in the country. This road show is expected to further strengthen tourism relations between travel partners of both countries and aims at increasing the traffic of HNIs and high-affluent Punjab travelers to Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka has seen substantial growth in tourist arrivals from India in the year 2017, with over 3.84 lakh Indian travelers. This makes India one of the top 5 tourist arrival markets in Sri Lanka. Also, Sri Lanka is one of the top 10 holiday destinations for Indian travelers, so with this roadshow, the Tourism Board is looking forward to extending its reach beyond metro cities of the country.

This 7-city roadshow aims at strengthening tourism relations between travel partners of both countries and is part of SLTPB’s strategic efforts to promote Sri Lanka as the most preferred short-haul holiday destinations for Indian travelers.

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