Sri Lanka to launch integrated tourism digital plan

Colombo, April 11 (IANS) Sri Lanka on Thursday approved a proposal to launch an integrated tourism digital plan to boost the number of arrivals to the island nation.

Following a proposal by Minister of Tourism Development, Wildlife and Christian Religious Affairs, John Amaratunga, under the plan, an estimated $1.95 million will be invested to further develop the tourism industry and improve Sri Lanka's security image globally, reports Xinhua news agency.

The tourism ministry, in a statement, said this investment would be mainly focused on five high tourism arrival markets,-- India, China, Britain, Germany and France.

Another key objective under this programme is to increase average spending of tourists per day to $210 and increase the employment within the tourism industry to reach 600,000 by the end of 2020.

In addition, steps will also be taken to increase security for tourists travelling to Sri Lanka and to coordinate more joint synergies among airlines flying to Sri Lanka. Measures will also be taken to provide better experiences for tourists.

Sri Lanka's tourism industry is targeting 3 million tourists by the end of the year with a revenue of $5 billion this year. So far this year, Sri Lanka has attracted 740,000 tourists.