BOI signs agreement for Hospitality Industry Academy

The BOI signed an Agreement with the Australian Academy of Hospitality (AAH) recently. Hemasiri Fernando, chairman, signed on behalf of the Board while Kalum de Silva, Managing Director of AAH signed the agreement on behalf of the Company. Also present at the signing ceremony was Mrs. Champika Malalgoda, Director General of the BOI and Mrs. Noorul Naima Markar, Academic Director of AAH. Australasian Academy of Hospitality was set up in Sri Lanka in partnership with Evolution Hospitality Institute in Sydney, Australia to provide higher education and training opportunities for Sri Lankan Students in this growing field. The Academy will be set up at Alexandra Place, Colombo 7. When completed it will create 26 new employment opportunities.

The investment will be US$ 279,000. AAH provides quality programs from Certificate level to Advanced Diploma in Hospitality Management on a mirror model in collaboration with Evolution Institute of Hospitality in Sydney, Australia.

‘Earn as you Learn – Paid Internships’, while studying internships are an integral part of all hospitality management programs offered at AAH. Leading hotels and resorts in Sri Lanka and overseas are partnered with AAH to provide paid internships which will make the students employable by the time they graduate from a prestigious Hospitality Qualification from Australia. Students will, therefore, have the opportunity to recover part of the cost from the training allowance they receive during the internships. AAH students will then have the opportunity to transfer to either Evolution Institute of Hospitality in Sydney Australia after completing the Diploma or to an Australian University to complete the bachelor’s in hospitality management after the diploma or advanced diploma. The total contribution from Hospitality, Travel and Tourism to GDP was 11.6% in 2017. It is expected to grow to LKR 1,595.5 Billion or 11.7% of GDP in 2018. It is forecasted to rise 5.5% per annum to LKR 2,718.1 Billion (12.3% of GDP) by 2028. The industry generated 404,000 jobs directly in 2017 (5.1% of total employment) It is forecast to rise to 1 million jobs in 2028 (12.8% of total employment). Mr. Kelum de Silva, Managing Director of AAH stated “What led to our starting this project was that while tourism arrivals have kept increasingly consistently the skill gaps for the staff in the industry was also growing. Australia has world-renowned institutions in vocational training so this is the reason why we partnered with this Australian Institute”. He added “We were able to partner with hotels in Sri Lanka, the Middle East, including Dubai and Abu Dhabi, Singapore and Australia. One experience was at Pullmans in Dubai which operates a totally paperless environment, a new capacity that will be introduced by AAH in Sri Lanka”. The other project signed by the BOI was with ARC Estate (Private) Limited to set up a Service Apartment Complex. The Project will be built up at Horton Place, Colombo 7 and will provide employment for 100 staff. The value of the investment for this apartment complex will be US$5.17 million. (BOI Media Release)