As Sri Lanka takes tentative steps to recover from an economic crisis that it was plunged into last year, India, its top tourism source market, holds key
COLOMBO: The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau will invest nearly LKR 1.5 Billion in promoting the island country in India over the next 12 months. The proposed investment is a part of the country’s key plan as it looks to shore up its foreign exchange reserves and recover from an economic crises it has been plunged in since 2021.
India has been Sri Lanka’s top tourism source market since 2018, while China has been a close second. The SLTPB said it anticipates that the two countries will continue to hold the top spots for the foreseeable future considering the economic recession in the European markets.
“We are not going to go all 100 countries, but we go for the lowest hanging fruits and that is why India and China are excellent. President Ranil Wickremesinghe also said to concentrate on India and China because the numbers are going to play a huge role for the next three to four years. Although there is a recession in Europe that does not mean we are ignoring the key markets there, but the key focus will be India and China for sure,” said SLTPB chairman Chalaka Gajabahu.
The announcement, which came on the sidelines of the 67th convention of the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) in Colombo, followed SLTPB’s commitment to launch a two month-long rejuvenation campaign for Sri Lanka by the end of July, and thematic campaigns by October, to promote Sri Lanka’s unique offerings and captivating experiences. Apart from the sun, san and pristine beaches, Sri Lanka is also expected to target the Indian market with focused campaigns on religious tourism, with special focus on the Ramayana and Buddhist circuits.
It followed an assertion by Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe that Sri Lanka will harness the potential of tourism to essay a recovery from the bankruptcy it had plunged into.
Wickremesinghe also proposed that the BIMSTEC area should be made a “borderless tourism” zone to tap the tourism potential of the member countries India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan, the seven that form the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) grouping.
“We are trying to make tourism new and make more use of the potential. We faced bankruptcy in Sri Lanka (and) now that we are getting out of it, the debt restructuring process is taking place. We still have to remember that the balance of trade is not in our favour. So, we have to ensure a positive balance of trade in the times to come. One of the ways of raising a fund which is not debt-creating is tourism. So, exploit it to the fullest,” Wickremesinghe said.
Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Gopal Bagley, also underlined the historical and cultural ties between India and Sri Lanka, describing both countries as “civilisational twins”. He said efforts to boost tourism between Sri Lanka and India include the resumption of flight connectivity to Jaffna starting July 16, and work on ferry services between Nagapattinam and Jaffna. He also underscored the role of religious tourism in boosting revenue while citing the potential of Buddhist and Ramayana circuits in India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.
President TAAI Jyoti Mayal also said Sri Lanka is a significant tourist market for India, considering the cultural, heritage and religious connect the two countries share.
“Primarily, for the Indian consumer, there is ease of travelling to Sri Lanka. The Indian currency is widely accepted, and Sri Lanka packs a very diverse tourist experiences within its expanse,” Mayal said.
Prior to the outbreak of the Covid pandemic, tourism was the third-largest source of foreign exchange inflows to Sri Lanka, accounting for about 5% of the country’s GDP.
The International Monetary Fund granted Sri Lanka a 48-month extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility of $3 billion to support the island nation’s economic policies and reforms.
With tourism as a key contributor to the its economic recovery, the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) said Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals breached the 6 million figure at June end, a significant improvement over 2022, and within reach of the year’s target of 7.5 million foreign tourist arrivals.
While India, China, which Sri Lanka describes as “low hanging fruits”, are the focus of the country’s attention, it has also tailored its marketing campaigns to target the UK, France, Germany, Russia, Australia, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, the US, the Middle East, Japan and Korea markets.
COLOMBO: The Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau will invest nearly LKR 1.5 Billion in promoting the island country in India over the next 12 months. The proposed investment is a part of the country’s key plan as it looks to shore up its foreign exchange reserves and recover from an economic crises it has been plunged in since 2021.
India has been Sri Lanka’s top tourism source market since 2018, while China has been a close second. The SLTPB said it anticipates that the two countries will continue to hold the top spots for the foreseeable future considering the economic recession in the European markets.
“We are not going to go all 100 countries, but we go for the lowest hanging fruits and that is why India and China are excellent. President Ranil Wickremesinghe also said to concentrate on India and China because the numbers are going to play a huge role for the next three to four years. Although there is a recession in Europe that does not mean we are ignoring the key markets there, but the key focus will be India and China for sure,” said SLTPB chairman Chalaka Gajabahu.
The announcement, which came on the sidelines of the 67th convention of the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) in Colombo, followed SLTPB’s commitment to launch a two month-long rejuvenation campaign for Sri Lanka by the end of July, and thematic campaigns by October, to promote Sri Lanka’s unique offerings and captivating experiences. Apart from the sun, san and pristine beaches, Sri Lanka is also expected to target the Indian market with focused campaigns on religious tourism, with special focus on the Ramayana and Buddhist circuits.
It followed an assertion by Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe that Sri Lanka will harness the potential of tourism to essay a recovery from the bankruptcy it had plunged into.
Wickremesinghe also proposed that the BIMSTEC area should be made a “borderless tourism” zone to tap the tourism potential of the member countries India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan, the seven that form the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) grouping.
“We are trying to make tourism new and make more use of the potential. We faced bankruptcy in Sri Lanka (and) now that we are getting out of it, the debt restructuring process is taking place. We still have to remember that the balance of trade is not in our favour. So, we have to ensure a positive balance of trade in the times to come. One of the ways of raising a fund which is not debt-creating is tourism. So, exploit it to the fullest,” Wickremesinghe said.
Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Gopal Bagley, also underlined the historical and cultural ties between India and Sri Lanka, describing both countries as “civilisational twins”. He said efforts to boost tourism between Sri Lanka and India include the resumption of flight connectivity to Jaffna starting July 16, and work on ferry services between Nagapattinam and Jaffna. He also underscored the role of religious tourism in boosting revenue while citing the potential of Buddhist and Ramayana circuits in India, Sri Lanka, and Nepal.
President TAAI Jyoti Mayal also said Sri Lanka is a significant tourist market for India, considering the cultural, heritage and religious connect the two countries share.
“Primarily, for the Indian consumer, there is ease of travelling to Sri Lanka. The Indian currency is widely accepted, and Sri Lanka packs a very diverse tourist experiences within its expanse,” Mayal said.
Prior to the outbreak of the Covid pandemic, tourism was the third-largest source of foreign exchange inflows to Sri Lanka, accounting for about 5% of the country’s GDP.
The International Monetary Fund granted Sri Lanka a 48-month extended arrangement under the Extended Fund Facility of $3 billion to support the island nation’s economic policies and reforms.
With tourism as a key contributor to the its economic recovery, the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) said Sri Lanka’s tourist arrivals breached the 6 million figure at June end, a significant improvement over 2022, and within reach of the year’s target of 7.5 million foreign tourist arrivals.
While India, China, which Sri Lanka describes as “low hanging fruits”, are the focus of the country’s attention, it has also tailored its marketing campaigns to target the UK, France, Germany, Russia, Australia, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, the US, the Middle East, Japan and Korea markets.