Tourism in Sri Lanka is growing with unparalleled rapidity as the government aims to muster 2.5 million visitors by 2016. Growth of this scale requires streamlined private public cooperation, so the government asked the private sector to prepare a report titled “The Way Forward … Private Sector Perspective”. Employment was the key issue to emerge from the report. If tourism growth hits government targets, a total of one million people will be directly and indirectly employed in the industry while the figure currently stands at 220,000. This is great news form a perspective of job creation but it is a human resources nightmare. Around 800,000 people will need hospitality training during the next five years in order to ensure that the tourist experience in Sri Lanka is enjoyable. Overall image is important in order for the destination to develop and retain a competitive edge over its neighbours. This is a particularly daunting challenge given the fact that approximately 75% of people in the industry are indirectly employed. The Government must thus find ways of delivering training to street vendors, chauffeurs, travel agents, ticketing agents and the like who represent Sri Lanka to tourists. Human resources is considered to be the key underlying issue at play as infrastructure developers stride headlong into hotel and resort development. Room shortages will not be a problem, but getting quality hotel staff and tour guides to serve visitors is another matter entirely.
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