Hotels Association asks Govt. to underwrite loans

The Hotels Association of Sri Lanka ( THASL) has urged the Government to underwrite working capital loans amounting to Rs12 billion.

Issuing a statement, THASL President Sanath Ukwatte said they are making this request as an industry after taking stock of the situation. He added that the association was asking the Government to underwrite the working capital loans in order to meet monthly salaries, employee benefits and utilities for a period of one year, as most private and some state banks were reluctant to risk capital payments of these loans, especially to the Small and Medium Sized Enterprise (SME) sector.

Last year, the tourism industry brought in USD4.5 billion with employment, both direct and indirect, of over 500,000 people.

He said that the tourism industry had been performing well and was on track to reach the USD5 billion mark this year. “The Easter Sunday terrorist attacks halted industry growth, and its recovery will depend on how well the industry manages international public relations from now. Tourism in Sri Lanka is mainly private sector owned, with substantial capital investments by both local and foreign investors. The industry has created a large number of job opportunities across the country,” he observed.

The tourism industry is now facing a crisis due to a breach of security it had no control over, he lamented. Hotels were directly targeted in the attacks, and it would take time to erase security fears from the minds of international travellers, he added. “We need to look at stabilising the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of people whose only source of income is from tourism. Their service charge, which at times is more than the salary, is nonexistent today. We urge the Government to grant us this facility without any further delay,” he said.