Some of Sri Lanka’s biggest names in the leisure industry have been appointed to a new Tourism Advisory Committee by the government to drive the tourism agenda in the country.
The 14-member committee is chaired by Dileep Mudadeniya, a former managing director of Sri Lanka Tourism and currently senior vice president of John Keells Holdings. Other members include SriLankan Airlines CEO Richard Nuttall; Nuwaraeliya Hotels Company deputy chairman/managing director Gerard George Ondaatjie; Connaissance de Ceylon and Thema Collection chairman/managing director Chandra Wickramasinghe; Galle Face Hotels group vice president Nihal Muhandiram; and three heads of state agencies involved in tourism.
The mandate of the committee is to advise the government on strategic and sustainable tourism development, so as to enhance the growth of the tourism industry in line with the National Tourism Policy.
The committee has been appointed under the current Tourism Act and is expected to continue during the term of the incumbent government.
When asked about the committee’s immediate action plans, Mudadeniya said members had just held a preliminary meeting.
“At our second meeting (in April), we would look at our agenda and (decide) how we should further proceed,” he said, adding that the committee will gather once a month.
The formation of the Tourism Advisory Committee comes at a time when Sri Lanka is gaining glowing reviews for its tourism draws. Among the many recognitions are Sri Lanka’s inclusion on BBC Travel’s 25 Best Places to Travel in 2025, Sigiriya being declared the World’s Most Welcoming City for 2025 by Booking.com, and the Pekoe Trail being featured in Time’s World’s Greatest Places in 2025.
