Bin Sulayem reviews tourism ties with Sri Lankan Tourism Minister

Also present were DTCM Executive Director Business Tourism, Mr. Hamad bin Mejren, and DTCM Executive Director Corporate Support, Mr. Ibrahim Yaqoot.

The visiting delegation members were Mr. Ashoka Girihagama, Acting Ambassador/Sri Lanka Embassy in Abu Dhabi, Mr. Wasantha Senanayake, Consul General of Sri Lanka in Dubai and Northern Emirates, Mr. M.S.M.I. Aslam, Tourism Promotion Officer of the Consulate General of Sri Lanka in Dubai, and Mr. Mohamed Rizly Mohamed Illiyas, Coordinating Secretary to the Minister of Tourism Promotion.

Both sides reviewed the bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and Dubai and ways to further strengthen the ties, especially in the tourism domain.

The minister briefed Mr. bin Sulayem about the latest developments in his country and how the island republic has been promoting tourism in the Middle East, including GCC countries.

On his side, Mr. bin Sulayem highlighted the initiatives taken up by Dubai government and DTCM to promote tourism to Dubai and enhance the number of visitors from across the world.

According to Sri Lankan officials, tourist numbers from the Middle East to Sri Lanka rose 41 per cent in the first nine months of the year with a surge of 104 per cent in August alone. The Middle East market remained promising.

Sri Lanka's Ministry of Tourism is aiming to increase the sector's contribution to the country's GDP to 10%. In 2008, $400m was generated from tourism in Sri Lanka, though this represents just two to three per cent of the total GDP. A target has been set to attract 2.5 million tourists to Sri Lanka in line with a plan for 2016. There are presently between 14,000 and 17,000 hotel rooms in the country and the authorities have plans to scale up this up to 50,000 in the next seven years.

Globally, the most important markets currently for tourism in Sri Lanka are the UK and India, followed by Germany and France. Within the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar are strategic sources of visitors.