Presidential awards for travel and tourism expanded

The Presidential awards for travel and tourism will be expanded with more award categories to give opportunities to more individuals and entrepreneurs in the SME sector, said Deputy Minister of Tourism Faizer Mustapha.

He was speaking at a media briefing at the Sri Lanka Hotel and Tourism School to outline the road map for the next awards ceremony.

Mustapha said the Presidential awards ceremony held for the first time in the country was successful. Though awards were given to a few individuals and institutions this year more categories will be included in next year's awards.

Responding to a question from the media that the panel of judges for the awards did not comprise experts in the travel and tourism industry and was incompetent, the Deputy Minister said the panel comprised industry experts selected through a technical committee.

"The tourism industry has been growing at a steady pace since last November with the English test cricket series and the visit of the Barmy Army. The visit of the Bohra leader and the community this month showed the confidence of tourists in the country as a safe destination", he said.

The first Presidential Awards ceremony for travel and tourism was held under the patronage of President Mahinda Rajapaksa on January 28. The awards recognised the contribution made by individuals and institutions to the tourism industry.

There were 44 awards featuring special categories such as tourism legends and pioneers who had made a salient contribution to the travel and tourism sector in the country.

Hotels, tour operations, tour guides, communication organisations and CSR activities and local tourism initiatives were some of the other categories.

The next Presidential awards ceremony will be held on January 28, 2009. at the Cinnamon Grand.

LF