The tourism sector plays a key role in Sri Lanka’s economy by providing it with employment, bringing in foreign exchange and providing much-needed revenue for the Government.

Tourism makes up 12 per cent of the nation’s gross domestic product and has become the third-largest source of foreign exchange. In 2018, an impressive 2.3 million tourists visited the country, earning the nation US$ 4 billion to US$ 5 billion in revenues, and providing 40,000 jobs to the economy.

The Easter Sunday bombings of April 2019 that killed 250 people were the start of a downfall of Sri Lanka’s tourism industry. Among those killed were 42 foreign nationals who were visiting Sri Lanka. After this, some countries put out travel advisories warning citizens to avoid travel to the nation. Tourists made a hasty exit, and new arrivals dropped by 70 per cent in May and 60 per cent in June compared with the previous year.

For a while it seemed that the tourism industry would bounce back as revenues grew again toward the end of 2019 to US$ 3.5 billion, but the COVID-19 pandemic and the war between Russia and Ukraine dragged down Sri Lanka’s tourism sector again. The current economic crisis has made recovery tricky for the sector.

When looking at the historical contribution of tourism to Sri Lanka’s economy, we find that the Government started adopting policies to promote tourism toward the 1960s. Better accommodation facilities and travel infrastructure were set up to attract tourists.

Sri Lanka liberalized its economy in the late 1970s, which brought in investments in the tourism sector.

When looking at the historical contribution of tourism to Sri Lanka’s economy, we find that the Government started adopting policies to promote tourism toward the 1960s. Better accommodation facilities and travel infrastructure were set up to attract tourists. Sri Lanka liberalized its economy in the late 1970s, which brought in investments in the tourism sector.

The Sri Lankan Civil War that started in 1983 shattered the tourism potential of the nation. Initially the tourism flow remained relatively unaffected as the violence was restricted to the Northern parts of the country. But this changed from 1995 when the attacks affected Colombo as well.

Another blow to the tourism sector was the 2008 global financial crisis. But after 2010, the tourism sector witnessed a steep rise and became the engine of growth of the Sri Lankan economy. Tourism made up 5.6 per cent of Sri Lanka’s GDP by 2018.