Sri Lanka MICE travel mart postponed for after polls
View(s):The Sri Lanka MICE Travel Mart scheduled for February/March in Colombo with the presence of 50-100 incentive and conference planners from Asia has been postponed with May-July being considered as the new dates due to proposed parliamentary elections, its s organisers said.
“Owing to the change of Government and fresh elections in the next few months, we are rescheduling the dates,” Vipula Wanigasekera, General Manager of the state-run Sri Lanka Convention Bureau (SLCB).
The event was expected to be attract delegates from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam who will be hosted with pre-paid airfares and free hotel accommodation provided by the organisers including the SLCB, national carrier SriLankan Airlines and hotels. There will be one-to-one meetings and delegates would be shown new products at locations. “Priority will be given to those who haven’t been to Sri Lanka before,” he said.
Mr. Wanigasekera said Minister Dissanayake is keen on MICE tourism and wants more promotions in this area with the focus on value (high spending MICE travellers) versus numbers (leisure tourists).
“With the Minister’s blessings we would actively promoting MICE and the forthcoming Travel Mart will be a step in this direction,” he said.
The authorities are aiming to use representatives of some 200 government organisations attending conferences abroad to promote the country as a conference destination and present an expression of interest to host the meeting in Colombo.
“We want these government officials – after proper training and advise on how to make a bid or letter of interest – to bid for these conferences, which they attend, to be held in Sri Lanka,” said Mr. Wanigasekera.