The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), in cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism and Christian Affairs (MoTCA), conducted a seminar ‘Recovery of Tourism Sector in Sri Lanka after the Easter Bombings 2019’ targeting officials and professionals in the tourism sector.
Masato Takamatsu, the Managing Director and Chief Research Officer and Head of Tourism Crisis Management Consulting at JTB (Japan Travel Bureau) Tourism Research and Consulting, in his keynote presentation shared experiences of Japan and learnings of other countries how a crisis can be used as an opportunity to Build, Back, Better tourism sector in Sri Lanka. Potential strategies in bringing back foreign tourists, for instance, well-timed destination marketing identifying prime source markets more likely to be recovered in the short run and needs immediate engagements besides source markets more likely to take more time to recover and needs cautious approach was comprehensively deliberated based on market tendencies.
Participants ranging from government officials to business personnel had interactive discussions on how each organisation can play their role to recover the Sri Lankan Tourism Industry.
Takamatsu said the challenges Sri Lanka is facing can be used an opportunity to ‘Build-Back-Better’ the tourism industry to show the world all the attractions and people’s hospitality Sri Lanka can offer.
Representatives from the Ministry of Tourism and Christian Affairs, Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, Institute of Hotel School Management, Sri Lanka Inbound Tour Operators, the Sri Lanka Hotel Association attended the seminar chaired by the Secretary to the Ministry of Tourism and Christian Affairs, S. Hettiarachchi.