The European Union (EU) has decided to grant EUR 3.5 m to revive Sri Lanka's tourism industry.
This was revealed subsequent to a discussion held between the EU Ambassador to Sri Lanka and Maldives Denis Chaibi and the Industrial Exports, Tourism and Aviation Minister Prasanna Ranatunga yesterday (19).
EU Ambassador has further requested the Tourism Ministry to submit relevant project proposals on tourism revival.
Sri Lanka’s tourism arrivals began to trend downwards due to Covid-19-induced lockdowns of cities in the original epicentre of the virus, China, and travel restrictions on Chinese nationals by the Chinese Government. China has long been one of the top three tourism-generating markets of Sri Lanka.
A few weeks later, the virus also restricted global travel for people around the world. The virus has since then gradually spread to over 200 countries including Sri Lanka, prompting the closure of the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) for arriving passengers.