The Government is targeting four million tourist arrivals annually and US$8 billion in tourism revenue by 2030, Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya said, as Sri Lanka looks to further expand the tourism industry while ensuring its economic benefits reach local communities.
Speaking at an event held to mark World Tourism Day 2026, the Prime Minister said Sri Lanka had made significant progress in the tourism sector since 2024.
According to the Prime Minister, more than two million tourists, approximately 2.05 million, visited Sri Lanka in 2024, generating US$3.17 billion in revenue. She said tourist arrivals increased further to 2,362,521 in 2025, with the country earning US$3.22 billion in foreign exchange from the sector.
Building on this growth, the Government aims to attract four million tourists annually and increase tourism revenue to US$8 billion by 2030, the Prime Minister said.
PM Amarasuriya said a key Government objective is to develop an eco-friendly tourism industry that empowers local communities without damaging the environment or Sri Lanka’s cultural heritage.
She stressed that the economic benefits generated through tourism should be fairly distributed, including to small-scale entrepreneurs operating in villages.
The Prime Minister made the remarks while attending the National Conference on “Digital Innovation for Sustainable and Culturally Integrated Tourism,” organised to mark World Tourism Day 2026.
The conference, jointly organised by the Western Province Tourism Board and the Postgraduate Institute of Archaeology of the University of Kelaniya, was held on Sunday (27) at the Western Provincial Council Auditorium. The event was held under the theme “Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism.”
Addressing the gathering, PM Amarasuriya said Sri Lanka possesses a unique heritage enriched by centuries of human creativity, wisdom, traditional knowledge and cultural diversity. She said protecting the country’s historical heritage while using it to contribute to social and economic development is an important national responsibility.
The Prime Minister said one of the objectives of the Government’s policy programme, “A Thriving Nation – A Beautiful Life,” is to strengthen the economy by introducing modern technology and reforms across all sectors.
She also stressed the need to directly apply knowledge and research generated by universities and research institutions to the practical development of the tourism industry in order to achieve the Government’s targets.
The public and private sectors, universities and stakeholders involved in heritage conservation must work together to transform innovation into practical solutions for the tourism sector, she added.
PM Amarasuriya also highlighted the importance of equipping young people and schoolchildren with knowledge of digital technology, creativity and Sri Lanka’s cultural heritage, saying this should form part of the foundation for a sustainable tourism industry.
She said greater attention would be given to tourism through the Government’s new education reforms and encouraged schoolchildren to consider tourism as an important future career field. (Newswire)