The Tourism Act No. 38 of 2005 shouldn’t be repealed

 The need of the hour is for all stakeholders to work together to steer the tourism ship to calmer waters from this violent storm we find ourselves in, rather than embarking on a divisive distraction of changing the existing Act for no visible benefit – Pic by Shehan Gunasekara

• Key concerns of ‘duplication of roles’ and ‘much higher financial burden’ could be addressed within the framework of existing Act 

The premier industry associations – The Hotels Association of Sri Lanka (THASL) and Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO) – received a letter from the Secretary, Ministry of Tourism dated 27th November 2020 requesting written recommendations for ‘Proposals for New Tourism Act’. 

It stated that the views of the industry would be considered in drafting a new Tourism Act. The two industry associations requested time until 31 March 2021 to respond as this was considered a very important issue pertaining to the governance of the industry. 

Despite this request for the extension of time being granted, the industry is alarmed to discover a new Tourism Act has been drafted in the interim period without any consultation with the private sector who are the main stakeholders, and excluding private sector participation in the proposed boards. This is considered to be an act of bad faith.  

The key industry associations have expressed a unanimous view that the Tourism Act 2005 should NOT be repealed. With operational level changes within the framework of the existing Act, the key concerns of ‘duplication of roles’ and addressing the ‘much higher financial burden’ could be addressed. 

Key points to note

• The existing Tourism Act No 38 of 2005 is an excellent piece of legislation which was championed by the then Tourism Minister, the late Dharmasiri Senanayake and the then Secretary, Ministry of Tourism who ably supported in drafting the Bill. This was a painstaking process of consultation and compromise over a period of several years, resulting in a Draft Bill being presented to Parliament. The late Dharmasiri Senanayake is on record stating that the tourism industry is a shining example of a successful private sector/public sector partnership. 
• The existing Tourism Act was the outcome of an initiative of the private sector to reduce the financial burden on the Treasury by raising its own funds. The main objective being the promotion of Sri Lanka as an attractive tourist destination in the global marketplace. To support this, a ‘Tourism Development Levy’ (TDL) and ‘Embarkation Levy’ was charged from all registered stakeholders. The Act included private sector representations on all four Boards, working together with the public sector representatives, for the benefit of the industry. 
• Tourism is mainly a private sector owned and operated industry. It is my belief that the existing Act provides an adequate framework for this industry to become the largest foreign exchange earner, creating significant direct and indirect employment opportunities from related activities.
• It also serves as an ideal model of a private/public sector partnership for the industry, designed to achieve the goals set in the President’s ‘Vistas of Prosperity and Splendour’ Manifesto for an ‘efficient country free from corruption’, and to reach the targets set for the tourism industry to reach seven million visitor arrivals generating over $ 10 billion in revenues. 
• The existing Boards can be made more effective through a simple change in the operational aspects within the framework of the existing Act, rather than imposing a new Act. 
• It is sad to note that despite adequate funds raised by the Industry, the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Board (SLTPB) was unable to embark upon a global promotional campaign due to bureaucratic delays and the Government’s procurement guidelines. 
• The four Boards have very different roles to play in their respective focus areas. Amalgamation of several ‘back-of-house’ functions such as Legal, Finance, HR, IT, etc would result in the elimination of the ‘adverse effects such as coordinating and resource wastage due to the dividance of the entire tourism sector into four institutions’ as referred to in the Cabinet decision of 5 April 2021.  

The investors and operators in the tourism industry have faced many challenges over the past several decades. The present Tourism Act No. 38 of 2005 serves as an ideal model to sustain the industry in a fast-changing environment. 

We appeal to the Cabinet of Ministers and the relevant Authorities to reconsider their decision to repeal the existing Tourism Act, enter into a consultation process with the Private sector to resolve the key issues of complexity and resource wastage that has been identified as the key reason to repeal the existing Act. 

The need of the hour is for all stakeholders to work together to steer the tourism ship to calmer waters from this violent storm we find ourselves in, rather than embarking on a divisive distraction of changing the existing Act for no visible benefit.