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Sunday Nov 17, 2024
Wednesday, 27 May 2015 01:58 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
By Charumini de Silva
Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake on Monday assured hospitality industry stakeholders and investors that Sri Lanka would have an open sky policy for investments.
“We will have an open sky policy for anyone to come in, thereby propelling Sri Lanka towards a new era,” he said, addressing the inauguration of the two-day Hospitality Investment Conference Indian Ocean 2015 (HICIO) held in Colombo.
The region’s only hospitality investment conference is supported by the Board of Investment of Sri Lanka (BoI) and the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce. The conference attracted over 150 developers, operators and owners of hospitality properties, as well as investors, financiers, designersand technology providers from across the region.
Sharing insights on how the Government is facilitating investment and economic development within Sri Lanka, Karunanayake said the tourism industry was a significant sector bringing in foreign exchange to the national economy.
“Foreign exchange that comes in is a direct value addition to the economy. It also is a frontrunner in settling balance of payment issues and attracting Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs),” he added.
According to the Sri Lanka Tourism Master Plan,the country not only intends to attract 2.5 million tourists, but also attracting $ 3,000 million FDIs within the next five years, he noted.
He added that the Sri Lanka Tourism Master Plan would be driven to new heights and contribute significantly to the national economy.
The Minister assured the investors that the Government was committed to provide assistance to all kinds of investment.
He urged the potential investors and delegates to take the maximum opportunity of investing in the country.
“Exploit Sri Lanka to the best of its opportunities. Use Sri Lanka as a catalyst because when we grow, you grow.”
The Minister said that a new country had been born and a new democratic culture had been established and invited stakeholders to help Sri Lanka in this hour of need to rise with other developing countries in the region.
The conference provided a platform for discussions and debates on the opportunities offered by the growing hospitality and tourism markets in the Indian Ocean – the Maldives, Mauritius, the Seychelles and Sri Lanka.
Pix by ShehanGunasekara
