The next PATA Youth Symposium is to be hosted by the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism & Hotel Management (SLITHM). Organised by the Association’s Human Capital Development Committee, the Symposium takes place on Thursday, May 18 with the theme of ‘No Barriers: Millennials and the Future of Tourism’.
“With the Association’s activities this year including a special focus upon the Young Tourism Professional this PATA Youth Symposium reflects our commitment to the next generation of tourism professionals. As we continue to develop and enhance the knowledge and skills of students engaged in tourism, hospitality management and related degree courses this event is an outstanding opportunity for them to hear from and to network with tourism industry leaders,” said PATA CEO Dr. Mario Hardy.
“We are extremely grateful to the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism & Hotel Management for their support and enthusiasm in hosting our Youth Symposium. In doing so, SLITHM is helping to enhance the development of tomorrow’s tourism leaders.”
The Youth Symposium takes place on the first day of a busy PATA Annual Summit programme taking place in Negombo. The programme was developed with guidance from Dr. Chris Bottrill, Chairman of the PATA Human Capital Development (HCD) Committee and Dean, Faculty of Global and Community Studies at Capilano University.
Mr. Sunil Dissanayake, Chairman of SLITHM, said, “The 2017 PATA Annual Summit in Sri Lanka is a tremendous boost for our nation’s tourism industry. We are very proud to be hosting this important segment of the main event. Our goal is to attract and develop millennials to take Sri Lanka’s hospitality industry to greater heights and I am confident that the Youth Symposium programme will be both informative and inspirational for all delegates.”
Confirmed speakers at the Youth Symposium include Dr. Mario Hardy ; Sunil Dissanayake; Aleandre Kwan (Philanthropies Asia Programme Manager, Microsoft, Singapore); Andrew Chan ( Founder and CEO – ACI HR Solutions, Singapore); Dr. Chris Bottrill (Chairman of the PATA Human Capital Development Committee and Dean of the Faculty of Global and Community Studies, Capilano University, Canada); Faeez Fadhlillah (CEO – Tripfez and PATA Face of the Future 2017); Hiran Cooray (Chairman – Jetwing Hotels) and Miss JC Wong, PATA Young Tourism Professional Ambassador.
The symposium includes plenary talks on ‘Talent and Recruitment in the Tourism Industry – The future for Gen Y and Millennials’, ‘Corporate Commitment to Future Generations’ and ‘Youth Entrepreneurship for the 21st century’. The event also features two interactive roundtable discussions on ‘What is important to the future Generation of Tourism Professionals?’ and ‘How will Millennials and the next Generation Change the Future of Tourism?’
In recent years the PATA Human Capital Development Committee has organised successful educational events at various institutions including UCSI University Sarawak Campus (April 2010), Institute for Tourism Studies (September 2010), Beijing International Studies University (April 2011), Taylor’s University , Kuala Lumpur (April 2012), Lyceum of the Philippines University , Manila (September 2012), Thammasat University , Bangkok (April 2013), Chengdu Polytechnic , Huayuan Campus, China (September 2013), Sun Yat-sen University , Zhuhai Campus, China, (May 2014), Royal University of Phnom Penh (September 2014), Sichuan Tourism School, Chengdu (April 2015), Christ University , Bangalore (September 2015), University of Guam , USA (May 2016) and President University , BSD-Serpong (September 2016).
For further information, please email [email protected] .
The Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism & Hotel Management (SLITHM) is the only Government approved premier Institute in Sri Lanka, which was established by the Government in 1964 to train young men and women in the complex field of Hospitality and Travel Industry, and is managed by the Ministry of Tourism Development and Christian Religious Affairs. Further, in order to facilitate students island-wide, provincial schools have been set up in Anuradhapura, Bandarawela, Pallekelle, Koggala, Ratnapura, and Kurunegala.
Following the ever expanding tourism sector in the country with developments in the travel & hospitality industry, the Sri Lanka Institution of Tourism & Hotel Management provides a sound professional training to cater for the fast developing needs of the local and international hotel and tourism industries with the best trained and most highly motivated management professionals. During the first 10 years, the focus was to train personnel for top and middle management position in the industry, supplemented with a programme of short courses at craft level, which provided the manpower for the various departments in the hospitality trade.
Over the years SLITHM has fine-tuned its programmes to meet the specific needs of Sri Lankas and Asias changing industry wide market need and new schemes of training allows students to be more flexible in the choice of training and provides multiple entry-exit points. It also recognises prior learning, which benefits those who have gained hands on experience in the industry and who wish acquire further knowledge through a sound professional qualifications.
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