“Civil war mars development of tourism in Sri Lanka”
- Interview with ICEI team Srilanka

Istituto Cooperazione Economica Internazionale (ICIE) sent its local partners in Sri Lanka to visit various locations in Kerala to understand the different models of Tourism Management that operate there. They visited project areas managed by private initiatives as well as public private partnerships. Giuseppe Busalacchi, Coordinator of ICEI, Sri Lanka and Irshad Mohamed, Project Leader, ICEI, speaks to The Blue Yonder(TBY) on their experiences and observations on the study trip organised by TBY.

TBY: Can you give us a brief introduction of ICEI?

Giuseppe: Started as a centre for research and training, ICEI has been extensively active for over 20 years in sensibilization on international issues, at both local and national levels. ICEI created a platform to address cross-cultural divisions, international relations, management of natural resources, international markets, debt, ethics and economics, women’s conditions, globalization, etc.

Since1991, ICEI has been promoting development projects in Southern countries, focusing its research and action on two specific areas: sustainable tourism and organic agriculture.These goals were identified as valuable tools to reduce poverty and for local development, thereby offering feasible opportunities to address the contradictions of North-South relations.

TBY: In one of your leaflets, you say “Sustainable tourism answers to social and economic equity principles and works with the total respect of environment and local cultures. It promotes positive interactions between tourism industry, local communities and travellers.” What exactly is ICEI's role in promoting Sustainable Tourism in Sri Lanka?

Giuseppe: ICEI has been working in tsunami affected areas in Ampara district of Sri Lanka since 2005. ICEI specializes in development programmes that promotes unity in diversity and cross cultural exchange through tourism. In Pottuvil, a small village close to Arugam Bay, there is a beach that attracts mostly surfersr, therby catering to a specific group of people (hoteliers mainly). Ever since ICEI set base in Pottuvil, there was an attempt to promote a different kind of tourism that showcased other community-based talents and exposed the diverse ethnicity of Potttuvil.

ICEI in association with Sri Lanka Tourism Board, Sri Lanka Eco-Tourism Foudation (SLEF) and Sewalanka Foundation, a local NGO that develops livelihood activities through community-based tourism (CBT) signed an MOU and came up with Community Eco-Guide Association(CEGA),being the first of its kind in Sri Lanka. ICEI is also the founding member of Italian Association of Responsible Tourism (IART) and a member of World Tourism Organization (WTO).

ICEI is recognised for responsible tourism in Sri Lanka’s tourist network. ICEI with support from SLEF is organising a workshop on responsible tourism on 16th August in Colombo where representaives from the Ministry of tourism, the Tourism Board and other stakeholders will be present.

TBY: We understand that your organisation focuses a lot on capacity building of local communities. Once the funding phase of the projects is over, how do you envisage the sustainability of tourism projects? Do you have an exit strategy?

Giuseppe: ICEI is collaborating with local partners like Sewalanka who are based in the area and can sustain a long term programme. ICEI is open to working with reliable people from the Tourism Board, local NGO’s and community memebers.

Through regular monthly meetings with community members, ICEI has been identifying issues through the course of this project. Over the years, motivated people have come forward to participate in our activities.

ICEI doesn’t have an exist strategy. On the contrary, we have proposed for a three year extension to the Italian Government until the community is atble enough to be independent.

TBY: ICEI team visited Kerala with The Blue Yonder covering destinations like River Nila, Kumbalangi, Alleppey Backwaters, Periyar wildlife Sanctuary and Thenmala recently. Is there any striking difference in the way tourism is managed in these places compared to the areas you operate in Sri Lanka?

Irsahd: There is a lot of similarity in the way our tours are organised. The participation of the tourism department and the forest department, especially is impressive in Kerala. Even though there are various initiatives in Sri Lanka, the follow-up from the part of Government is negligible.Sustainable efforts are required from all the stake holders.

TBY: Kerala is now one of the leading holiday destinations in the world. From your two weeks experience, what do you think is the advantage that Kerala has over Sri Lanka?

Irsahd: I should probably answer this from the disadvantage that Sri Lanka has. The war! Sri Lanka has everything that a traveller is looking for. The landscape and the cultural richness are very similar to Kerala. If not for the civil unrest, Sri Lanka would have been a successful tourist destination.

TBY: In all the project areas that you visited, there was active participation from the local communities. To what extend can you see the community participation in holiday destinations in Sri Lanka? Do the communities have key role in designing holidays for the travellers?

Irsahd: The Community Eco-Guide Association (CEGA) is a tourism association based in Arugam Bay, Sri Lanka. CEGA has a collaboration between local community based organizations (CBOs), cooperatives and associations founded to promote income generating activities related to tourism with the hope of improving the wellbeing of local people. This is also the first community tourism programme in Sri Lanka where local people can take active participation in developing itineraries and identifying activities. More details can be found here http://www.ecotourism-arugambay.org/

TBY: In Kerala, you were introduced to various activities like Thoni Cruise, Musical Trail, Folk Expressions, Bamboo Rafting and Jungle Patrol, House Boat cruise in the backwaters. You also stayed in the village called Kumbalangi, near Cochin. Is there any particular activity that impressed you the most? If so, which one? Why do you think so?

Irsahd: Bamboo rafting in the Periyar wildlife sanctuary! We think it is a very good model for eco-tourism activities. Participation between the forest department and those who were previously poachers and now protectors of the forest is highly commendable. However, they need to be assured of higher wages in the future. We believe that higher economic benefits for them will integrate the ex-poachers to the main stream and sustain the project.

Though we enjoyed all the holiday activities, we were quite concerned about pollution caused by the house boats in the backwaters of Alleppey. These houseboats should be operated in an environment friendly manner, considering the fact that there are thousands of people who are living nearby who are totally depended on the backwaters for their livelihood. I don’t need to talk about correlation between pollution and sustainability of the lake.

All other programmes were excellent in terms of participation of community and the manner in which environment concerns are addressed.

TBY: Your team had guides who work in Arugam Bay in Sri Lanka. In what way would you consider this trip as a learning experience to you?

This is a very good question! Most of us from the group were first timers to India and even to the travel industry. The idea of this trip was to learn various aspects of eco-tourism and how tourism is managed in other destinations like Kerala. We wanted to experience holiday activities and how they could be marketed. It was interesting to learn from your way of interpretation. Arun as I said earlier was a good model for guiding. Our guides have learnt a lot of magic from Arun.