Sri Lanka plans to attract 800,000 tourists in coming months

Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) has said that the South Asian country expects to attract around 800,000 tourists in the coming months of the year.

During a meeting held on Tuesday with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, representatives of the SLTDA said that a revenue of 800 million U.S. dollars is expected during the months ahead.

The prime minister has requested officials to make arrangements for the Jaffna International Airport, also known as Palaly Airport, to resume operation.

The prime minister also instructed tourism stakeholders to attract young people to work in the tourism sector as a large number of experienced employees in the hospitality sector have left the country.

He noted that the number of new recruits to hotel schools has dropped drastically as well.

Tourism is one of Sri Lanka's major foreign currency earners. However, the sector has been severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.