‘Tourism business has shown significant growth’

Gayan KANCHANA

Despite the global economic downturn, tourism business in the globe has shown a significant growth since 1988. The pace of the industry is expected to be accelerating in the next ten years, Confederation of Tourism and Hospitality (CTH) General Manager Ian Pack said.

Today the world tourism is not only a large share of GDP but also generates significant indirect revenues. According to 2010 data the hospitality and tourism direct contribution to the world GDP was 9% and indirect contribution was 2.8%,” he said addressing a seminar organised by the Thames College Hospitality and Tourism Management Postgraduate Programme.

“Over the last two decades there were so much of ups and downs in the global tourism sector. From 1989 to 2000 there was a total 4.0% growth rate in the industry, 2000 to 2011 it was only 1.3% but 2011 to 2021 it is expected to grow by 4.5%.

This future growth will be sustained across the globe but it will be driven by Asia.

The future industry growth will be contributed 3% by Europe, 3.7% by North America, and 6.4% by Asia,” he said.

Pack said, “In addition to the global growth, tourism industry is facing some major challenges.

Changing tourism patterns, increasing information transparency, climate change and environmental demands, search for cost effectiveness, rising input costs, currency instability, high cyclicality and seasonality of demand.

As an example previously tourists were more concerned about sun, sea and sand, and winter mountain week-end breaks, but now it has been changing to such as Cultural, Ecotourism, Trekking, Nature, Conferences, Religious, Educational Sport and Adventure.

Even though Sri Lanka has good prospects to develop the tourism industry, Sri Lanka suffers from lack of visibility in the digital world, he said.