By Rathindra Kuruwita

Pleasure is the main purpose of over 80 percent of foreign tourists who come to Sri Lanka, Professor in Tourism Management at the Sabaragamuwa University, Dr. Athula Gnanapala says.

In recent weeks there had been several instances where tourists were fleeced by some vendors and the victims often posted videos on social media and millions of potential visitors might see them, Prof. Gunapala said.

Sri Lanka was ranked 77th in the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index, published by the World Bank, he said.

“If we look at Malaysia, it is in the 29th place. Thailand is in the 31st place, India is at the 34th place and Indonesia is in the 40th place. These are our competitors,” he said.

This index looks at 14 variables, out of which natural and cultural resources occupy only the number two slot. Sri Lanka relies heavily on these two aspects, often ignoring variables like enabling environment which has pillars like business environment, safety and security, health and hygiene, human resources and labour market qualification of the labour force and ICT readiness, he said.

“We have a number of government and private entities that work for the betterment of tourism. They need to come together, talk about the issues they face and come up with a programme. If not, we will not be able to achieve long term tourism objectives,” he said.

Dr. Gnanapala said that a large number of trained hospitality workers had left the country during the last two years. Highly trained Sri Lankan workers were welcome in other countries and local establishments must pay their employees competitive salaries, he said.

“Otherwise they will migrate” he said.

Sri Lankan authorities must also take steps to dispel the perception that the country is an unsafe place. This is a perception a large number of foreigners have about this country, he added. Dr. Gnanapala said certain western and regional media has portrayed Sri Lanka as unsafe and do not respect human rights.

“I have met Indian professors who were of the opinion, prior to visiting the country, that Sri Lanka was unsafe. However, their opinions have changed, once they visited the country. In fact, we can use tourists as goodwill ambassadors,” he said.

Dr. Gnanapala said female travellers account for about 50 percent of the total number of tourists visiting Sri Lanka and we must ensure that they feel safe here. Recently, the country was named the top destination for solo female travellers, he said.

“We must ensure that there are no incidents that damage this good perception,” he said.