The ‘Miss World Tourism 2023’ pageant is currently underway, with mini pageants having started their run on 20 July, leading up to its grand finale today (29). With contestants from 28 different countries, the pageant is organised in a bid to promote Sri Lanka’s tourism industry and in the hopes that the hosting of this pageant will provide a welcome and much-needed boost to the local tourism industry.
According to Miss World Tourism Director Radhika Gunasekara, the pageant is set up in a manner which ensures that the programme will focus not only on fashion, talent, and beauty but also on the promotion of Sri Lanka’s tourist attractions, culture, and heritage.
The Travel Voice also learnt that Gunasekara’s team had faced numerous challenges in the process of bringing the project to fruition. Noting that it had been difficult to carry out such a mammoth task by herself, Gunasekara also shared that State support for an initiative such as this had been largely lacking, adding that it had been incredibly disappointing not to receive active support from the country’s tourism authorities for a project of this nature.
She also noted that it was precarious to host such a number of international participants without the support of the State sector, especially considering the power of social media and how word of mouth could be damning if these contestants found their experience in Sri Lanka to be less than ideal.
She however added that she was taking great care to ensure that the pageant continued and to provide the women who had travelled to Sri Lanka on behalf of Miss World Tourism a wonderful experience.
