Sri Lanka, being one of the most popular travel destinations across the globe, has suffered a triple blow since the 2019 Easter Sunday attacks, followed by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021/22 and the protest campaigns in 2022 March onwards.
The industry that contributes almost 5 percent to the country’s GDP was also the third highest foreign exchange earner behind ex-pat remittances and apparel exports. In 2018, the best-recorded foreign earnings year, the industry brought in US$ 4.3 billion from approximately 2.3 million arrivals, according to Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) statistics.
The tourism sector has become one of the most valuable elements in the country’s economy by contributing substantially towards employment generation and foreign exchange earnings, and also being a strong revenue provider to successive governments, directly and indirectly, during the past several decades.
However, as a result of the worldwide negative publicity surrounding the unfortunate Easter Sunday debacle, arrivals fell to 1.9 million and revenue fell to US$3.6 billion. Yet, considering the magnitude of the incident, the drawback in arrivals was comparatively not severe.
In contrast, the impact of Covid-19 in 2020 and 2021 was extremely harsh. In 2020, the tourist arrivals dropped to a drastic five hundred thousand, cut down by almost 75 percent from 2019. Since then, although there were temporary recoveries time and again, the overall performance has not gone back to 2018 figures.
Number of reasons
Can the country afford this loss during this gruesome crisis? The simple answer is that it cannot be, for a number of reasons. The country is in extremely dire need of foreign exchange. It is no secret that the public unrest predominantly started in April this year due to the short supply of fuel, LP gas, and long power cuts.
The key reason for this was the unavailability of adequate foreign currency for imports of these important commodities. The Government was forced to impose power cuts due to the shortage of fuel for coal power plants that provide the highest contribution to power generation. This situation triggered an intense public reaction that directly influenced the recovery of the tourism industry.
Apart from the current need for foreign exchange, it is acknowledged that the tourism sector encompasses overall hospitality services and is a development agent and a catalyst for economic growth.
Sri Lanka’s enormously diverse climatic conditions, rich heritage, culture, and diversity are showcased through tourism, which has historically provided economic gains. Hence, consistent attention and effort by the Government are desperately needed at this point.
Media reports revealed that several functions were organised by Sri Lanka Tourism under the 2022 theme, “Rethinking Tourism; Rural and Community Centric Tourism. The media was invited to participate in the program held in Colombo organised by the Tourism Promotion Bureau. However, according to the same reports, neither the Minister nor the State Minister in charge were present at the ceremony.
The participants have not been given any clear picture of their future plans of action or any other information. On this important day, the organisers certainly would have invited industry experts to discuss the subject in the presence of the media. These incidents show the enthusiasm or lack thereof of the authorities on this extremely important factor.
This writer recently keenly watched a television discussion about “country branding” with the participation of SLTDA seniors, a scholar specialising in tourism, and the highest-level industry expert from the private sector.
Negative impacts
In no uncertain terms, all the participants disclosed the negative impacts on the industry due to the absence of a national policy on promoting the country as a brand.
They said that a few times during the past few years, effective strategic plans were made with contributions from experts. Regrettably, the plans were either thrown under the carpet, neglected, or discarded when a new Government came into power. As with many other despicable acts committed by Sri Lankan politicians, political manipulations and influences superseded the realisation of all such plans.
As per this year’s World Tourism Day theme, Sri Lanka must certainly rethink tourism from new angles. The industry veterans in Sri Lanka can produce numerous fresh and creative ideas in diverse new areas with the amazing natural resources and conditions in the country. Not only are there numerous untapped concepts in Sri Lanka, but there are also numerous markets that can be attracted if these new areas are developed.
Tourism in Sri Lanka is a sector that can be developed tremendously and brings invaluable foreign currency to the country. Tourism boosts the revenue of the economy, creates thousands of jobs, develops the infrastructure, and plants a sense of cultural exchange between foreigners and countrymen.
From the moment a tourist sets foot in the country, the inflow of cash in foreign currency starts until he or she leaves the country.
The awareness of the extreme importance of the industry has not been adequately conveyed to society, particularly to the lower tiers. Conveying the lucrative benefits of tourism to rural communities can help create new markets and, through that, new jobs as well.
According to expert opinion, not only direct engagements but also indirect self-employment can be created through these new markets that have already been identified.
Although Sri Lanka is known as a tourist hot spot in Asia-Pacific, the second most competitive region in global tourism, the competition in the region for supremacy is very high.
Ironically, every country in the region declares that they are the best.
Nevertheless, important and respected channels and magazines such as Lonely Planet, Forbes magazine, the Guardian, and The New York Times have identified Sri Lanka as a top destination in the world.
Competitiveness over other similar countries is a major factor in determining the growth of the industry in Sri Lanka. Since the end of the travel and other restrictions created by Covid-19, every country in this region has stepped up tourism promotion to its optimum as they know that tourism is one of the easiest industries to earn foreign exchange.
Unfortunately, soon after the global pandemic crisis came to an end, Sri Lanka’s social crisis, triggered by the enormous financial crunch, delivered a sucker punch. Due to the continuous unrest, the industry, which was slowly recovering, was pulled down once again to the bottom.
The ongoing electronic media involvement as an extremely powerful tool is also seemingly not much of a help to tourism promotion. Except for a few, most television channels relentlessly telecast negative news.
Pivotal role
The assistance most channels provide in development efforts, tourism included, is minimal. They can play a more pivotal role by making the general public aware of the essential elements of key activities.
The country, at this time of the year, must be swarming with tourists from all over the world. Nevertheless, the ongoing and unprecedented economic turmoil has disrupted this lucrative business sector and continues to wreak it further. The industry will play a crucial role in the revival of the current distressed economy.
The Opposition politicians and other anti-Government activists who deliberately attempt to project a negative image to the international community should realise that the harm they cause can be irreparable.
What they do, knowingly or unknowingly, can inflict damage on themselves. They will have to face the same music if they elect their preferred politicians in the future if they harm the country’s image.
Hence, not only stakeholders but also the entire citizenry must stand behind all efforts to resurrect the tourism trade in Sri Lanka. The country is desperately in search of ways to come out of the mess created by politicians, past and present. The tourism sector is one key segment that can hugely contribute to the effort.