Launching South Asian Journal of Tourism and Hospitality
View(s):The Faculty of Management Studies of Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka recently launched its maiden journal on tourism and hospitality namely ‘South Asian Journal of Tourism and Hospitality’ (SAJTH). It is a peer-reviewed bi-annual journal with open-access, issued in January and July, was introduced in collaboration with leading academics in Tourism and Hospitality across the world. The ceremonial launch was held at the Auditorium of the Staff Development Center, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka where Professor Jayantha Lal Ratnasekera, Chairman- CVCD (Committee of Vice-Chancellors and Directors Sri Lanka), Vice Chancellor, Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka attended as the Chief Guest. The Deans of the Faculties, Administrative Officers, Heads of the Departments of the Faculty of Management Studies, academic and non-academic staff of Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka participated in the event.
-
- The Team behind the success, FMS Family
-
- Prof. MSM Aslam
-
- Prof. Jayantha Lal Ratnasekera Chief Guest
-
- Prof. Athula Gnanapala Dean, Co-Editors- in-Chief
-
- Hading over the journal to the Chief Guest
-
- Prof. Athula Gnanapala, Dean, Co-Editors-in-Chief
-
- Prof Jayantha Lal Ratnasekera, CVCD- Chairman, Vice Chancellor of Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka
The journal was launched in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the university as the Faculty of Management Studies believes that her primary responsibility is to create and disseminate knowledge of Tourism and Management Studies. Sharing his thoughts at the launch, Professor Jayantha Lal Ratnasekara stated that “I think you will agree that most of the higher education institutes in Sri Lanka including state universities have not given necessary attention to research and development even though they are our main academic functions”. He appreciated the effort made by the Faculty of Management Studies in launching this journal providing an avenue for dissemination of new knowledge in and out of the South Asian context.
The editorial team of SAJTH comprises an eminent panel of researchers representing the Asian sub-continent. Professor Athula Gnanapala (Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka) heads the journal as a Co-Editor-in-Chief with Professor Malcolm Cooper (Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Beppu, Japan). Dr. Rangana Shalika (Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka) and Dr. Jayantha N. Dewasiri assisting as Managing Editors of the journal. Prof. Alan A. Lew (Northern Arizona University, USA), Prof. Norain Othman (Uiversiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia), Prof. Khairil Wahidin Awang (University Malaysia Kelantan, Malaysia), Prof. M.S.M. Aslam (Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka), Prof. Wasantha Rathnayake (Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka), Prof. Honggang Xu (Sun Yat-Sen University, China), Dr. Iraj Ratnayake (Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka), Dr. Sarath Munasinghe (Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka), Dr. Sampath Wahala (Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka), Prof. Lee Jollife (New Brunswick University, Canada), Prof. Rachel Dodds (Ryerson University, Canada), and Prof. Stephen Boyd (Ulster University, Northern Ireland) are working on the journal as the editorial advisory board.
The Journal accommodates three types of papers. Firstly, research papers, which will be the most common type of publications that demonstrates sound theoretical, empirical, and/or methodological underpinnings and makes a clear contribution to knowledge in the field of Tourism and Hospitality. Secondly, case study and practitioner papers providing critical and concise yet pragmatic views on contemporary issues specific to Tourism and Hospitality will be published. Finally, there will be book reviews. Commenting on the launch, Dean of the Faculty of Management Studies and Co-Editors-in-Chief of the journal, Prof. Athula Gnanapala stated that “we are keen on maintaining the quality of the journal, the article acceptance rate is lesser than 15% for the first issue and most of the articles were rejected at the editorial desk itself. The future issues of the Journal will provide a platform for academic dialog in publishing interdisciplinary research in the intersection of tourism, hospitality, environmental management, business management, economics, and community. We will accept research that is conducted through qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods approaches”
Prof. Malcolm Cooper (Co-Editors-in-Chief) addressed the gathering through online platform. He stated that “It is a great step taken by the Faculty of Management Studies in providing research infrastructure and it is a valuable addition to explore the research in tourism and hospitality in and out of the region, as the Co-Editors-in-Chief of the journal I am looking forward to see excellent research work is being publishing by the journal” Sharing his thoughts, Chairman of the Faculty of Research and Publication Unit Prof. MSM Aslam stated that “It is a vital role for us to contribute to the broader world in a broader sense through research and dissemination since it is one of our primary responsibilities, this is the reason behind the introduction of this quality outlet for the scientific communication. We are happy to see that Faculty of Management Studies has taken necessary steps for the global development, global change, and social transformation through this journal since it is one of our responsibilities as an academic institution”.
As a Managing Editor of the journal, Dr. Jayantha N. Dewasiri extended his sincere gratitude to all the authors for their valuable contribution through research articles, to the reviewers for their constructive comments that helped to bring the papers to a publishable level, and to the language editors for their services rendered to the Journal.
SAJTH features a peer-reviewed format that ensures enhanced visibility and global exposure.
The journal can be easily accessed through : https://www.sab.ac.lk/sajith/