Sri Lanka to liberalize beverage licenses to improve tourism industry
Sri Lanka’s Government Information Department has reportedly stated that provincial councils in the country have been asked to liberalize beverage licenses to further boost the tourism industry.
Accordingly, provincial councils have been requested to present proposals to liberalise beverage licenses during a meeting with Sri Lanka’s Tourism and Aviation Minister Prasanna Ranatunga and Tourism and Aviation State Minister Arundika Fernando recently.
The meeting was held as a part of a plan to grow tourism earnings to the US$ 10 billion by 2025 target set by Sri Lanka’s President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
The provincial councils were told that the government would look favourably on such proposals to liberalise licenses, the statement by the Government Information Department has said.
Meanwhile, the provincial councils had called for targeted initiatives to boost the growth of religious tourism.
Currently, restaurants and hotels must obtain specific types of licenses to retail, serve or allow consumption of alcoholic beverages.
At end-2018, the Excise Department had issued 705 hotel licenses and 862 hotel bar licenses, concentrated in the Colombo, Gampaha, Galle, Kalutara and Kandy districts.
Another 554 licenses had been issued to restaurants, 46 licenses for rest houses and 100 licenses for boutique villas.
OSL take:
Sri Lankan authorities are taking all possible steps to further boost the tourism industry that is on a continuous growth path. Sri Lanka’s tourism industry is one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the country with tourist arrivals on a continuous growth path as well. Sri Lanka continues to be listed as a must visit destination by globally renowned travel publications. All this has resulted in the expansion of business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry. Therefore foreign businesses/investors could explore business/investment opportunities in Sri Lanka’s tourism industry.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/20200129/Z_2 |