Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa yesterday assured support for the tourism industry for a quicker revival despite the COVID pandemic.
The expression of assistance was conveyed when he met all stakeholders of the tourism industry, including hoteliers, tour operators, travel agents, aviation and airline representatives, along with officials.
In what was the first meeting since Basil assumed duties as Finance Minister, a host of issues were discussed.
He said that with rapid vaccination in the country and other measures in place, the tourism industry could expect a recovery. He also said that the Government will lobby for the relaxation of adverse travel advisories and exclusion of Sri Lanka from Red Lists implemented by several countries.
It was emphasised that the greater promotion of Sri Lanka’s successful vaccination drive as well as visitor-friendly initiatives whilst following COVID health and safety protocols would help a faster recovery. The need for aggressive promotion via attractive packages was also stressed.
Basil said that the tourism industry rebounding was critical for Sri Lanka to enhance foreign exchange earnings and reserves. In incidents-free 2018, Sri Lanka earned $ 4.4 billion from tourism with arrivals hitting a record 2.3 million. Since then the industry has been suffering from the double whammy of 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks and the on-going COVID pandemic from mid-March 2020.
The tourism industry was told that due to a host of initiatives and support, the export sector had performed commendably amidst the pandemic.
Private sector representatives thanked the Government for extending debt moratorium as well as concessionary funding schemes but emphasised that continued support was critical as proper industry recovery will take longer.
Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga, Health Minister Pavithra Wanniarachchi, State Ministers Nivard Cabraal, Wimalaweera Dissanayake, D.V. Chanaka, and Priyankara Jayaratne were associated with the Finance Minister during the meeting.
(FT)