Sri Lanka's hospitality sector to create more jobs as tourism grows

Colombo, July 3 (newsin.asia) – Sri Lanka’s Tourism Minister, John Amaratunga, on Monday, said over 300,000 jobs will be created in the hospitality industry by 2020 as tourist arrivals to the island country continue to grow.

Speaking at the 38th Graduation ceremony of the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management, which is the country’s leading hospitality education provider, Amaratunga said Sri Lanka’s hospitality sector, presently offers direct employment to around 150,000 individuals.
This number will double to 300,000 by the year 2020 to service the 4 million visitors the country is targeting by then, he said.

The Minister further said the national room inventory which is around 25,000 at present will also increase to 45,000 by 2020.

“This government is very focused on making tourism the engine of national economic growth and the number one foreign exchange earner by 2020. There is already a Tourism Master Plan that is being implemented through a dedicated Tourism Task Force in order to achieve these goals,” Amaratunga said.

The Minister further explained that presently Sri Lanka was facing a shortage of manpower in the tourism and hospitality sectors as the demand outweighed the supply.

“This is because of the continuing expansion of the hotel sector while the youth continue to focus on the more traditional career paths as opposed to the more glamourous hospitality careers,” he said.

“Sri Lanka is now in an envious position especially with regard to its tourism industry as the arrival numbers continue to grow year on year. This is facilitated by the growing number of international hospitality brands that have entered our space in the recent past,” he added.

With many international hotel chains now constructing hotels in Sri Lanka, Amaratunga said these hotels will open up thousands of opportunities for local youth.

He further encouraged an equal number of females to also enter the hospitality trade.

Meanwhile, Amaratunga also reminded the new graduates to serve their motherland before seeking overseas exposure as Sri Lanka needs their services at this defining moment in its tourism industry.

“I say this because we are now at the halfway mark of our eventual arrivals target of 4 million tourists by 2020. Sri Lanka is well known the world over as a very hospitable nation with a very hospitable people who are always smiling,” he said.However in the recent past, Amaratunga said, the government had seen some adverse reports in the media where tourists had been exploited and the promised paradise had not materialized.

“Today social media is a very powerful tool and one bad experience can negatively influence thousands of others. It is therefore our duty, especially those in the hospitality industry to be aware of the power of social media and to always ensure that those who visit us are treated well so that the same social media could be leveraged to positively influence other visitors.”