The Hon. Ashoka Gunasena

¶ 01 Mr. Speaker, the Adjournment Motion moved by the Hon. Dharmapriya Dissanayake concerns developing tourism within the North-Western Province. Tourism occupies a prime place in our economy. In his address, the President presented a plan to develop tourism centered on historic cities. The North-Western Province indeed contains many ancient cities.

¶ 02 Over time, many sites have faded from public knowledge—even locals are unaware. We have already deployed a team and identified several such places. For example, centered on the Dambadeniya Kingdom, our research team has revealed multiple special attractions: Raanagala, Thun Dola reservoir, Mahamevna, Bambaragala Rajamaha Vihara, the Sangili Bridge over the Ma Oya linking Kegalle and Kurunegala, Bhakbelikanda—the province’s last mountain range—and Maragala, among others of exceptional beauty.

¶ 03 Going forward, we will give attention to these when developing tourism. Many sites are linked to the five historic capitals within the province, and we will focus on promoting them to tourists. Treating the North-Western Province as a key component in developing our economy, I conclude, Mr. Speaker.