Putting stakeholders back on feet, key to revive tourism industry - SLAITO chief | Sunday Observer

Putting stakeholders back on feet, key to revive tourism industry - SLAITO chief

8 May, 2022
Chairman, SLAITO,  Thilak Weerasinghe
Chairman, SLAITO, Thilak Weerasinghe

It is essential to initially get all these stakeholders of the tourism industry back on their feet as they face major obstacles  in rescheduling loans, moratoriums, accumulated leasing facilities leading to seizing of vehicles, said Chairman, Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators, Thilak Weerasinghe in an interview last week.

Excerpts:

Q: How do you see the tourism industry today and what measures do we need to take to make it a USD 10 billion revenue earning industry?

A: The Easter Sunday attacks were a  major blow to the tourism industry which was heading to be one of the best foreign exchange earners for the country having notched 2.3 million tourist arrivals in 2018. Its negative effects were gradually dying down and the industry showed signs of recovery by December 2019.

However, unfortunately the out- break of the  pandemic in April 2019 put paid to any chances of a recovery and tourism being the most affected industry worldwide came to a complete standstill until December 2021.

All stakeholders of the industry including accommodation, transport, ancillary services, value adders and professionals faced severe difficulties which resulted in most of them being forced to stop operations as it was impossible for them to survive.  

In this scenario, making tourism a USD 10b  industry is an uphill task. Leaving apart achieving it, the thought of it is unrealistic. It is essential to initially get all these stakeholders back on their  feet as they face major obstacles  in rescheduling loans, moratoriums, accumulated leasing facilities leading to seizing of vehicles.

Attractive incentives should be offered to convince them to remain in the industry which will be vital to achieve this target since the entire industry is in disarray and is not ready to entertain visitors.   

Q: What are the key challenges faced by SLAITO driving tourism promotion and other stakeholders to boost the industry and how do you propose to overcome them?

A: The key challenges faced by the industry which comprises services viz accommodation, transport, other services and professional services are unable to sustain operations as the infrastructure is not in place for revival.

Thus the initial challenge will be to assist all  the players to get back on their feet and continue with their services. Financial assistance by way of rescheduling loans, offering moratoriums with incentives such as payment holidays, writing off of all statutory payments and services by the state authorities are essential.

It is important to consider offering these facilities not only for the tourism industry but also other industries such as agriculture as their performances have a rolling over effect on tourism.

We have seen airlines withdrawing services or reducing capacities and frequencies when the ground situation is not conducive. Immediate steps will have to be taken by the authorities to arrest the situation and help attract 15, 000 passengers a day for the survival of the industry. If not achieving the desired objectives will be far from reality.   

The fuel and gas shortage and power cuts leading to street demonstrations not only hinders attracting  visitors from key markets such as UK, USA, Europe – it also tarnishes the image of the country and discourages visitors.

SLAITO has been voicing concerns at various forums about the need to find quick  solutions to the issues. We are confident that with the support of the authorities the industry would revive, laying  the foundation for  global tourism promotion. 

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