Colombo (LNW): During the Ministerial Consultative Committee on Investment Promotion, it was revealed that several laws and regulations will be enacted within the next three months to boost investment in Colombo Port City.

The committee, chaired by State Minister of Investment Promotion Dilum Amunugama, discussed the current legal system in Colombo.

Mr. Revan Wickramasuriya, Chief Operating Officer of the Colombo Port City Economic Commission, informed the committee that necessary laws and regulations to attract investments to the Colombo Port City would be implemented in the next three months.

He emphasised that while there are special legal arrangements for commercial activities in the port city, the country’s existing legal systems remain in effect.

The committee discussed the upcoming passage of a new act regarding investments in the country, with the chair expressing confidence that complex conditions for investments in Sri Lanka will be alleviated from next year.

Addressing concerns about delays in obtaining approvals from relevant ministries and institutions for investments in Sri Lanka, the chair noted that attention has been given to difficulties faced by investors due to increased electricity bills, and positive solutions are being explored.

Officials from the Export Development Board also reported progress in exporting cinnamon to China as a food product, in response to views expressed by Member of Parliament Yadamini Gunawardena during a previous Ministerial Consultative Committee on Investment Promotion.

State Ministers Jagath Pushpakumara, Diana Gamage, Shantha Bandara, Members of Parliament Niroshan Perera, Yadamini Gunawardena, Weerasumana Weerasinghe, Kumarasiri Rathnayaka, and Mrs. Manjula Dissanayake were present at the committee meeting.

By: Staff Writer

Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka tourism is witnessing an impressive performance in the fourth quarter of 2023 (4Q23), with tourist arrivals to the island nation increasing sharply in the first half of the month of November.

For the first 15 days of November, tourist arrivals totalled 74,664, the highest recorded within the first two weeks for the whole of 2023, the provisional data released by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) showed.

The previous highest arrival recorded within the first 15 days was in March 2023, with the influx of 60,882 international visitors.

Accordingly, 36 percent of the tourist arrival target set by the SLTDA for the month of November has been realised. The SLTDA has forecasted tourist arrivals for the month of November to reach 204,114.

To meet the target, Sri Lank has to lure at least 129,450 international visitors in the remaining 15 days of the month, which is about 8,630 tourists per day on average.

Meanwhile, the daily arrival average has increased to 4,977, which again is the highest recorded for the said period this year, up from the 3,500 average in October.

With the increasing rate of arrivals seen in November so far, the cumulative tourist arrival for January 01 to November 15 has reached 1,200,119, generating an income of US $ 1.59 billion.

Sri Lanka hopes to lure at least 1.55 million internationally for the year 2023, generating an income of US $ 2.5 billion.

The Tourism Ministry and SLTDA have repeatedly expressed con- fidence in the tourism sector exceeding the arrival target.

However, the industry stakeholders have shared that it is likely the target would be missed by a small margin.

For the month of November so far, India ranks as the largest tourist traffic generator for Sri Lanka, accounting for 18 percent of the total arrivals. Ranking second is the Russian Federation, contributing to 17 percent of the arrivals. And in third place is Germany, bringing in 10 percent of the arrivals.

The other key markets include the United Kingdom, Australia, China and the United States.

Despite economic struggles and travel bans experienced in the previous year, Sri Lanka has witnessed a significant increase in tourism in the first ten months of 2023.

This commendable growth in the tourism sector is largely attributed to the strategic program implemented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

The program was designed with a primary focus on strengthening the national economy via the robust development of the tourism industry.

The revival of the tourism industry requires innovative strategies. According to tourism ministry , the development of vibrant and active cities is key to attracting tourists.

In the previous year, the tourism industry was in a dismal state due to the economic crisis and travel restrictions imposed on Sri Lanka.

By: Staff Writer

Colombo (LNW): With Sri Lanka expecting a greater proportion of high-end cruise travellers this year, it is anticipated that cruise calls would exceed the record-setting year of 2018.

“Analysing data so far, there is a high probability that leisure cruise calls to the country will surpass the 65 cruise calls made in 2018, as over 30 cruises have called in the country during the first five months,” Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB) Director Marketing Dushan Wickramasuriya said.

Noting that leisure cruise tourism offers several benefits to destinations, local economies, and travellers, he said it was a sector which was not tapped aggressively earlier due to insufficient connectivity and terminal facilities.

He also noted the economic impact of leisure crude tourism is massive with higher passenger numbers and value generation.

“Leisure cruise passengers contribute to the local economy by spending money on various goods and services such as accommodations, dining, shopping, excursions, and transportation.

This spending supports local businesses, generates employment opportunities, and stimulates economic growth in those areas,” he added.

However, ports that cater to cruise ships often require infrastructure development and improvement. “The Government has already stepped up efforts to build passenger terminals and building docking facilities and other amenities,” he asserted.

He also said discussions are underway to explore a mechanism to offer visas for Indian tourists.

The commencement of the first-ever dedicated luxury Indian cruise line, Cordelia, Sri Lanka Tourism is expecting a greater boost this year with 80,000 Indian visitors and an expected economic impact of $ 18 million over the next four months.

The ‘Celebrity Edge’, a cruise ship operated by Celebrity Cruises, will arrive from Kochi, India to Colombo, Sri Lanka today, with 2,780 passengers, primarily from the United States, Australia and Canada, along with 1,273 crew members.

The 306m-long vessel boasts 15 decks and modern amenities. Having set sail from Dubai on November 13 and docking in Mumbai on November 16, the ‘Celebrity Edge’ is en route to Phuket, Thailand, as part of its 12-day voyage.

The final destination is Singapore, where the journey will conclude on November 25.’Celebrity Edge’ is operated by Celebrity Cruise, which is a firm under the renowned travel cruise line brand, Royal Caribbean Cruise.

The liner’s biggest attraction is the ‘Magic Carpet’, the world’s first cantilever floating platform arranged on a ship. The entertainment platform hovers at the height of a 13-storey building, between the sea and the sky. It can also be lowered to the water level.

By: Staff Writer

Colombo (LNW): Sri Lanka’s banking sector is ready to come back from the present downfall in the economic crisis following the government’s capital infusion of Rs 450 billion under recapitalization initiative of Budget 2024, several general managers of leading banks said.

They noted that the government’s efforts to introduce new laws to strengthen the financial sector will be an impetus for the local banks.

To build additional capital accumulation, an amount of LKR 450bn is allocated to support the capital improvement process in the banking system according to the independent asset quality review supported by IMF.

It has also been proposed to divest 20% of the investment in the two large State Banks either to strategic investors or to the public.

The Banking Act will be amended in early 2024 in order to provide the legal framework to the reforms such as appointment of Chief Officers, State Bank Board Members and restrictions on individual borrowers of the state-owned banks.

The borrowing limits are to be increased to LKR 7,350bn to aid the bank recapitalization and external debt restructuring.

The Government is to introduce Public Debt Management Act, Public Financial Management Act, Public Asset Management Act, Public Enterprise Reform Law, Investment Law and Public Private Partnership Law.

A regulatory framework to facilitate the gig economy and e-commerce transactions including cross border transactions to cover the areas of payment system, fiscal revenue and employee welfare.

The Government has allocated LKR 450bn of taxpayers’ funds to recapitalize the state banks in the process of restructuring the State-Owned Enterprises’ debts.

Sri Lanka’s banking sector is now saddled with additional pressure from the ever increasing non-performing loans (NPLs) given to COVID-19 hit businesses and individuals under the government’s relief scheme, Finance Ministry data showed.

According to the data, a massive sum of Rs. 1.6 trillion with accumulated interest as at March 31 2023 has to be repaid to the local banking sector by business enterprises, SMEs and individuals, hit by COVID-19 and subsequent economic crisis.

It has been indicated that non-settled loans obtained by affected business owners and persons under concessionary terms in five stages now amounts to 15.65 per cent from the total debt stock.

The coronavirus outbreak coupled with economic crisis and the resultant prolonged business disruptions have made it impossible for borrowers to repay their loans given under the scheme resulting in the banks’ credit profiles on the down side, several general managers said.