The short term plans proposed by the four-member Tourism Development Task Force appointed by Minister of Industrial Exports, Investment Promotion Tourism and Aviation, Prasanna Ranatunga, recently, will be included in the 2020 Budget, official sources told Sunday Observer Business on Friday.

The proposals will be on short and medium term plans.

Some of the core areas which are being discussed by the Task Force include: Improving the infrastructure facilities of the individual tourism zones, increasing the arrivals on the national carrier- SriLankan Airlines and to determine what type of promotions to carry out in which countries and the provision of additional security to tourists in the light of past instances of harassment to visiting tourists.

The Task Force will submit its Interim Report to the Government at the end of February, they said.The four-member Task Force comprises: Ministry of Tourism and Aviation Secretary Marina Mohamed (Head of the Task Force) and Secretary to the Ministry of Industrial Exports and Investment Promotion M.P. D.U.K. Mapa Pathirana, Chairperson of the four tourism agencies, viz the Tourism Development Authority, the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, the Sri Lanka Convention Bureau and the Sri Lanka Institute of Hotel Management Kimarli Fernando, SriLankan Airlines Chairman Ashok Pathirage, Chairman of Airport and Aviation (Sri Lanka) Ltd. (Retired) General G.A. Chandrasiri.

This follows President Gotabaya Rajapaksa directing Minister Prasanna Ranatunga to appoint a task force to formulate a Tourism Development Plan on January 13 for reaching a target of seven million tourist arrivals and a revenue of US $ 10 million per annum by 2025.