COLOMBO – The Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority (SLTDA) said plans were underway to promote Sri Lanka as a safe wedding destination amid the COVID-19 pandemic, local media reported on Thursday.

The move will not only help uplift the nation’s hardest-hit tourism industry but will also strengthen event management, fashion design and other supporting sectors that were impacted by the pandemic. SLTDA Chairperson Kimarli Fernando was quoted by the media report as saying that the SLTDA will soon launch a separate portal to support the endeavor.

Fernando said efforts would be taken to list event management companies, wedding planners, photographers, fashion designers and others under one platform so that the experience of having a wedding in Sri Lanka for foreign nationals can be convenient.

Sri Lanka’s tourism authority will also strengthen its relations with countries in the region such as India, the Maldives and Pakistan to promote the nation as a wedding destination. Market analysis shows that the destination wedding market will generate revenue of over 290 billion U.S. dollars by 2031.