In Sri Lanka’s southern tourism hotspot of Galle, locals are yet to see a recovery after the pandemic and the economic crisis

Despite things seeming bright in comparison to 2021, locals and residents say their trade and lives have not been more uncertain

At the close of 2022, crisis-hit Sri Lanka had recorded nearly 7.2 lakh tourist arrivals — more than three times the number seen in 2021, even if nowhere close to the country’s pre-pandemic mark of nearly 20 lakh visitors.

While authorities and the tourism industry pitched the modest, yet promising, figure as a sure sign of economic recovery, many in Galle, a tourism hotspot along the island’s southern coast, say their trade and lives have not looked more uncertain. On a recent weekday, the usually thriving fort — also a functional heritage site with district courts, government museums and offices — was hardly teeming with visitors.  

It was Taraka Jayasinghe Gunasekara’s first substantial hire in many days, from the neighbouring Matara district to Galle. As his clients toured the ramparts around town, built by the Portuguese five centuries ago and later fortified by the Dutch, the 35-year-old is waiting in his autorickshaw, staring at his phone.

“I am trying to see if I can join some languages classes, like Korean, or maybe some skills training course. Otherwise, I can’t find a job abroad,” he says. The three-wheeler driver’s matter-of-fact admission echoes the thinking of many young Sri Lankans, especially those in the employable age bracket. The crushing economic meltdown last year prompted over 3 lakh Sri Lankans to leave, a record high in official outmigration figures in the island. Hundreds of others opted for perilous boat rides to faraway shores. If they left despite the well-known precarity around economic migration, it is not for the want of trying.

Mr. Gunasekara himself moonlights as an electrician. “We are a family of four, with two small children. We have not had milk tea in ages, and very rarely get to eat a piece of fish with our meal, when a friend shares his catch. If things don’t change, what future do we have in this country?” he asks. For many, things have not changed much in the past few months. Long queues for essentials have disappeared, supplies have been restored, and street protests have ended, but many Sri Lankans like him are struggling to cope with the dramatic rise in living costs.

“They say our crisis has ended, but for whom? An egg costs 70 rupees (about ₹16) today. I went for a medical test, they charged me 3,800 rupees. Our politicians just don’t care,” says a 74-year-old employee at a gem store. “Don’t mention my name, they’ll put me behind bars. See what happened to Wasantha Mudalige,” he adds at once, referring to a prominent student leader currently detained under Sri Lanka’s much-feared terrorism law for over 150 days. The senior citizen’s quick price chart of essentials is now a common talking point in Sri Lanka.

Asked if the gem trade is seeing improvement, he notes: “Not really”. Official tourist arrivals reflect a sharp rise since 2021, but the impact is yet to be felt, according to locals, especially small traders, reliant on the tourism industry.