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House emphasizes on need for forming All-Party Government-by Camelia Nathaniel and Amali Mallawaarachchi Source:Dailynews The last day of the three-day debate on the Government’s Policy Statement was held yesterday (12) where the House emphasized the need for an All-Party Government (APG). The blame game continued as the ruling party MPs accused the Opposition of not supporting an All-Party Government while the Opposition criticised the Government’s failure to pronounce a time frame for the proposed Interim Government. SJB MP Dr. Harsha de Silva’s speech stood out from the rest as he commended the President’s Policy Statement while criticizing all political parties for not making genuine effort to form a short-term Interim Government. Chief Government Whip Prasanna Ranatunga joining the debate pointed out that Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) is ready to form an All-Party Government even if it still holds the 2/3 majority in Parliament. Ranatunga observed that the SLPP’s commitment ...

Aug 17, 2022 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles Tagged JVP Leader Anura Dissanayake, Prasanna Ranatunga, Sajith Premadasa, Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna

Misleading tourism estimates ?-by Kamnthi Wickramasinghe Tourists are now spotted in various parts of the country but people thriving from the tourism industry are awaiting profits Source:Dailymirror Sri Lanka is gradually losing its ability to serve tourists as a hospitable nation. A new gazette now restricts the import of several items considered non-essential but these include cheese, pasta and other items that make a menu more interesting. Cuisine for instance is a major feature that attracts tourists to the country. However, despite mega advertising and promotion campaigns, Sri Lanka is yet to witness tourists arriving in numbers similarly to the pre-pandemic period. Limping figures In 2018, Sri Lanka recorded its all time high of 2.3 million tourist arrivals brought a revenue of US$ 4.3 billion. In 2019 this number dropped to 1.9 million tourists in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday attack followed by the COVID-19 pandemic which brought the ...

Mar 15, 2022 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles Tagged Malavige Dudley Silva, Prasanna Ranatunga

Tourism – restricting outflow of foreign exchange -by G. A. D. Sirimal Source:island.lk Minister of Tourism, Prasanna Ranatunga, has declared the arrival of large numbers of foreign tourists here. He says about 82,327 of them came here in January, bringing in much needed foreign exchange. Has the Minister found out how much dollars these tourists have brought in and how much has been spent in Sri Lanka? Except those who come on business and stay in five-star hotels, other tourists spend very little. Some female tourists overstay their visas and engage in sex trade. I wish to relate an experience, when I visited Russia to attend a seminar conducted by ESCAP in 1985, when Russia’s economy was poor. ESCAP had deposited a certain sum in dollars with the organiers in Russia to meet payments to delegates and this amount was converted to Russian currency – rubles and paid to delegates ...

Feb 5, 2022 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles, elanka Finance Tagged Ajith Navard Cabraal, Central Bank, ESCAP, Gamini Senerath, Prasanna Ranatunga, President Gotahaya Rajapaksa, S. R. Attygala

82,327 tourists arrived in Sri Lanka in January Source:Dailynews Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga today said that 82,327 tourists have arrived in the country in the first month of this year. “Between 2000 to 3000 tourists visited the country daily from January 1-31. The highest number of visitors was on the January 5. The number of tourists who arrived that day was 3,371. The number of tourist arrivals from the Russian Federation in January was 13,478 while 11,751 arrived from India. 7,774 came from Ukraine and 7,442 from the United Kingdom. Tourists from Germany, France, Poland, Australia, the Maldives and Kazakhstan were the other countries who visited the country in January. ...

Feb 2, 2022 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles Tagged Prasanna Ranatunga

Tourism earnings hit $ 500 m target for 2021 By Charumini de Silva Source:ft.lk Industry aims to springboard from recovery to resilience from 2022 onwards Govt. all set to declare 2022 as ‘Visit Sri Lanka Year’ along with Global Communication Campaign Tourism Ministry to set up Special Secretariat to coordinate 5-year GCC activities National Tourism Policy for Sri Lanka to be finalised and implemented from this month The COVID-hit tourism industry has managed to rebound with earnings of over $ 500 million in 2021. “Tourism holds a greater significance in the services sector and has been a driver of growth for the economy. The industry was the most vulnerable to COVID-pandemic, but it has proven again its resilience with remarkable resurgence. The year ended with 194,495 tourists, with earnings surpassing the target of $ 500 million,” Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) Director-General Dhammika Wijayasingha told the Daily FT. As ...

Jan 15, 2022 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles, elanka Finance Tagged Asian Development Bank, Basil Rajapaksa, Central Bank, COVID-pandemic, Dhammika Wijayasingha, International Labour Organisation, National Tourism Policy, Prasanna Ranatunga, Sri Lanka Tourism, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, World Tourism Organisation

The Tourism Industry has been identified as the Key Sector in Reviving the Economy. Source:FT The tourism industry has been identified as the key sector in reviving the economy which has been affected by Covid-19. Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga pointed out the need to take a number of new decisions in this regard immediately. ...

Oct 31, 2021 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles Tagged Prasanna Ranatunga, The Tourism Industry

Aeroflot to launch services to SL from 4 Nov. Source:FT Russia’s Aeroflot will commence a new direct service between Moscow-Colombo, which starts on 4 November. The decision was made at a top-level meeting held between Russian Aeroflot officials and the Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga-led six-member visiting delegation in Moscow, Russia. Aeroflot officials Igor Chernyshiv, Ivon G. Batanov, Anton P. Myagkov and Natalya R. Teimuazova participated in the discussion. The Government is making a fresh effort to woo more tourists by tying up with leading international airlines, aiming to promote Sri Lanka as a safe and attractive tourist destination. ...

Sep 8, 2021 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles, elanka Finance Tagged Nimesh Herath, Prasanna Ranatunga

Sri Lanka to reopen airports for arrivals today-by Irangika Range Source:Dailynews Sri Lanka will reopen all its international airports for passenger arrivals from today following a 10-day shutdown to mitigate the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, Tourism Minister Prasanna Ranatunga said. He said the entry of all passengers to Sri Lanka was suspended on May 21 considering the prevailing situation in the country due to COVID-19. Minister Ranatunga added that all flights and passengers arriving Sri Lanka should strictly adhere to health guidelines. Commercial flights can each bring in a maximum of 75 passengers. ...

Jun 1, 2021 Posted by eLanka admin In Articles Tagged Capt. Themiya Abeywickrama, COVID 19 pandemic, Prasanna Ranatunga