Abstract:
The Eastern province has traditionally suffered economically and in
development in more recent decades due to the conflict which has caused major socioeconomic
problems. As a result, many business sectors virtually vanished from its yield.
Tourism industry started in Sri Lanka in 1960 and it was growing till the year 1981
consequently due to the terrorism the tourism sector was severely affected and the
number of tourists* arrival declined. Travel and tourism has become global and is one of
the fastest growing industries in the world. Hence, the tourism sectors of nations
provide economic development through generation of income and increased
employment. Although tourism industry is experiencing the fabulous upward trend in
the global tourism market, according to the statistics of SLTDA (Sri Lanka Tourism
Development Authority), the tourism sector declined in Sri Lanka before the civil war
was brought to an end from the country but still the growth of Sri Lankan tourism is far
behind the other tourists' destinations in the world. After the civil war in Sri Lanka,
demand for Sri Lankan destinations is escalating in the international market. It is,
therefore, indispensable for Sri Lankan tourism industry to formulate effective
marketing strategies for potential growth of the industry.
Hence, the objective of the paper is to investigate the present opportunities and
strategically match the tourism products and services in the Eastern region, and to
suggest some specific strategies for rejuvenating the tourism industry in coming years in
Sri Lankan. Secondary data and past researches have been used for this paper. Data are
analyzed using statistical software. The analysis shows that the future trend of the
number of tourist arrivals will be rising sharply but Sri Lanka's tourism industry and
specifically Eastern regions facing problems like mfrastructure, market driven tourism
strategy, developing human resources, and problems derived from cultural diversity of
tourists in matching the tourism products and services in the region. Finally, some
specific marketing strategies are recommended to exploit opportunities especially in the
Eastern Province under this post-war situation to improve the performance in the sector
for making Sri Lanka and this region as the best destination in Asia.
