This means the industry has a task of adding around 22,500 rooms to the current capacity, during the
next five years. At the same time most of the current facilities also need to be refurbished.
In order to facilitate the process of building room capacity SLTDA has taken the following initiatives
I. Setting up a ‘One Stop Shop’at SLTDA for tourism related investment projects with the cooperation of BOI, UDA, CCD, EA and other relevant line agencies, to be able to considerably reduce the time spent by investors to obtain necessary approvals.
II. The land alienation process has been simplified promoted in the development policy strategy. Instead of SLTDA attempting to develop resorts, the lands will be made available to potential investors who have the financial capability to pay upfront for a 99 year lease and they will be given the freedom to develop these resorts within the national tourism guideline. Small land blocks are available on an outright basis for foreign investments, provided investment in the land alone is in excess of USD 50 Mn, for the development of city hotels.
III. A group of specialists have been engaged to develop a land bank, which includes both government and private lands, which are made available to the potential investors. This project covers the entire island and will be a key contributor towards building provincial level tourism.
IV. A number of other tourism related projects have also been identified to support the overall growth of tourism in the country. The potential investors are encouraged to consider the following opportunities: