President Gotabaya Rajapaksa stressing a point during discussions yesterday with members of the Covid Task Force. Pic courtesy President’s Media via The Island/Asia News Network
COLOMBO — The Presidential Task Force at the National Operation Center for Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak on Tuesday proposed to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa that the Bandaranaike International Airport could be opened for tourists from August 0, as the situation had improved.
The task force had met to discuss how the tourism sector could be revitalized.
President Rajapaksa said that opening the country to foreign tourists should only be made after consulting local and international health experts. Future steps should be taken after listening to health and tourism experts, he said.
As a first step, hotels and restaurants registered under the tourist board would be given permission to start in-house dining. Later establishments that had not been registered with the tourist board would be allowed to open under the supervision of the Army. Tourism police units would also be established in tourist hotspots, the President said.