The Travel Agents Association of Sri Lanka (TAASL) has elected Chamila Wijethunge as President at its 51st Annual General Meeting, held on 17 September at the Dusit Princess Hotel in Kathmandu, Nepal, Hiru News reported.
Wijethunge, who represents Acorn Travels (Pvt) Ltd, becomes only the second woman to hold the presidency in the association’s more-than-50-year history.
An AGM held abroad
The meeting drew representatives of more than 50 member companies along with regional stakeholders. Holding the AGM in Kathmandu was itself the point: Hiru frames the venue as underscoring growing bilateral ties between the Sri Lankan and Nepalese travel trades.
Ruwanthi Delpitiya, Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Nepal, attended as Chief Guest and emphasised expanding tourism and commercial links between the two countries.
Participants included representatives of SriLankan Airlines, General Sales Agents and digital travel platforms, along with delegates from the Nepal Tourism Board and the Nepal Association of Tour & Travel Agents (NATTA).
A networking session after the formal proceedings was attended by more than 100 industry leaders, which Hiru describes as a platform for Sri Lankan delegates and Nepalese tourism authorities to explore joint promotional work and build direct business-to-business ties.
A quote without a speaker
Hiru’s report carries one direct quotation — “The continued progress of TAASL depends on members working together with a shared purpose and maintaining strong relationships across the industry” — without attributing it to anyone. It appears in the report immediately after the account of Wijethunge’s election but is not stated to be hers, and LankaNewz is not attributing it.
Context
Sri Lanka’s travel trade bodies have been active regionally this year, including the formation of South Asia’s first sustainable tourism association in May. Tourist arrivals data published by the SLTDA recorded 196,845 arrivals in July.
Not reported
Hiru does not say whom Wijethunge succeeds, who else was elected to the executive committee, or who the first woman president was. It gives no policy priorities, targets or mandate beyond describing a focus on inclusivity and international partnership in general terms, and does not say what term she serves or when it begins. It does not record the number of TAASL members overall, so the “more than 50 member companies” in attendance cannot be read as a share of the membership. No figures are given for Sri Lanka–Nepal travel volumes, which is the commercial premise of holding the AGM there.
No other verified newsroom had filed on the election at the time of writing.
