In today’s world it is not able to occur to do business if they stand-alone. All the businesses need support from other businesses and for this reason they need to work together with harmony. To create bond among all the stakeholders of tourism there is no alternative for Supply Chain Management.
Supply chain comprises the suppliers of all the goods and services that go into the delivery of tourism products to consumers. The harmony among different parties largely affects the satisfaction of tourists regarding the tourism industry. If tourists become satisfy then they will come again and again and it will increase the revenue which will be distributed among the stakeholders. So, the prime concern of the tourism and supply chain management is to satisfy the guest and earn profit.
Here the main parties are Accommodation, Transport, Ground handlers, excursions and activities and Food and crafts. Tourism, like all other supply chains, operates through business to-business relationships, and supply chain management can be applied to deliver sustainability performance improvements alongside financial performance, by working to improve the business operations of each supplier in the supply chain. The main differences between tourism supply chains and those of other sectors are that tourists travel to the product, and the product that they buy has a particularly high service component - in other words, it involves a higher proportion of people in the immediate production of the holiday experience.
The recent phenomenon in the supply chain industry is to practice Sustainable Tourism Supply Chain Management (STSCM) which means act in a way so that destination can be sustainable, environment does not get destroyed, business continue for longer time and generation after generation can enjoy the same thing. But in our country context from different literature it is cleared that the parties of Supply Chain Management is not well aware about the practice of Sustainable Supply Chain Management though Sri Lanka is greatly focusing on Sustainable tourism, Ecotourism, Responsible tourism, green tourism. Without ensuring the practice of STSCM Sri Lankan could not attain the goal of sustainability in Tourism Industry. This is to find out the current scenario of STSCM in our country as well as how to develop STSCM for tourism industry in Sri Lanka.
Key elements of tourism
Tourism supply Chain has to do with the provision of the key elements of the tourism industry by the host governments or destinations. Such provision should extend to maintenance, promotion and management of the tourism facilities and resources.
Tourism resources that are necessary for tourism supply range from natural to man-made. Infrastructure required would include telecommunication, accommodation and transportation. Tourism reception services include travel agencies, tourist offices, hire companies and visitor managers.
The one underlying characteristic of tourism supply that distinguishes it from other services is the way in which the mobile population who visit destination areas consume a tourism product, service or experience. In contrast, the supply elements are often fixed geographically at certain places (e.g. hotels, restaurants or visitor attractions). This means that businesses are required to sink considerable capital costs into different forms of tourism services and centres of production on the basis of the expectation that the destination will appeal to visitors and assist in the promotion of their individual product and service.
The supply of tourism products basically involves how various components of the tourist product are placed at the disposal of tourists. Tourism suppliers can be classified under the following headings: Hospitality, Transport and Attractions/Products. As far as hospitality is concerned, this is where a tourist will look at the appropriate forms of accommodation, different types of food service provisioning, entertainment and leisure activities.
The suppliers of hospitality products, such as accommodation, service, entertainment or gaming must be well located in relation to other components of tourism product. The suppliers of accommodation vary from privately owned organizations to large hotel chain groups or consortiums. On the other hand, the food service industry, which includes drinking places, restaurants, coffee shops and other food outlets, is strongly linked to the accommodation sector. Ultimately, accommodation forms the core of the tourism supply chain where it occupies a more central position.
Tourism supply can also be explained through the “distribution system” in tourism analysis. The distribution system makes the supply of tourism available and accessible to the demand side.
Because tourism is an intangible product, information is the only thing on which potential tourists can base their decision to make their arrangements. There are four components in the tourism distribution, system namely, suppliers of tourism services, the distributors of information, travel intermediaries and consumers.
Transportation is a critical component of tourism supply, as without it tourists cannot reach their tourism destinations. Aero planes, trains, buses and other modes of transportation are part of this category.
Hospitality and cultural resources are integral to a tourism offering.
It is the people and the cultural wealth of an area that makes it possible for tourism to take place. Tourists are hosted where there is security and often comfort. The attitudes of residents to visitors need to be desirable. The friendliness, courtesy, sincere interest and willingness to serve and to be better acquainted with visitors are crucial factors in tourism supply chain.
Supply chain activities
Some economic activities depend on tourism for their survival, e.g. tourist accommodation, travel agencies and long-distance passenger transport. Other activities such as restaurants and bars, car rental services, entertainment and attractions services also tend to rely strongly on tourism.
The dependency of certain activities or enterprises on tourism may also depend on their location. Thus, the supply of tourism activities comprises diverse economic activities, and, when presented as a sector, it is very heterogeneous, encompassing different activities, some of which are directly dependent on tourism and others only partly. A global approach to the analysis of tourism products deals not only with those that are direct results of economic activities, but also with any product, diversion, entertainment, commodity or service enjoyed or bought by visitors. The products supplied represent more than just tourism expenditure. Not every good or service has to be paid for by the consumer.
The use of assets, such as roads, historical areas, national parks, natural environment, in many cases is indirectly free, but in some instances visitors must pay for the facility offered as a service. In fact, most assets offer ‘services’ to their users or to the people enjoying them, regardless of whether visitors have to pay for them or not. Nevertheless, free ‘services’ such as nice weather, fresh air, beaches, mountains, landscapes and roads belong to the supply of tourism products. Free.
The visitor does not mean that the free service is also free for the supplier, a country. The country must spend money in order to maintain tourism assets such as fresh air, a neat environment, infrastructural facilities to mention but a few.
Because these types of products are hard to quantify, they are excluded from any form of analysis. To make the definition of the supply Chain of tourism products practical, only products that can be identified in a standard product classification listing are considered. In defining the supply Chain of tourism products, two considerations, representing two sides of the same coin, must be kept in mind.
Environmental supply dynamics
In view of the importance of ecotourism and the role this sector plays in the industry, the sustainability of associated resources is paramount. New rules may promote the necessity of Environmental Impact Assessments for any new tourism development project.
It is believed that negative impacts from tourism on surrounding communities begin to be felt when over 1/3 of the receipts from local business originate from tourists
The capacity for any area to absorb tourists without negative effects on the host area varies according to a multiplicity of factors. Environmentally sensitive areas and wilderness areas have a lower carrying capacity than do urban areas. This, however, is a controversial concept and not necessarily one that is generally accepted.
The tourism industry has a range of effects on the environment. In order that the negative effects of tourism developments on the environment are kept to a minimum, Environmental Impact Assessments must be carried out on any large, new projects, and constant monitoring of environmental and other effects must be conducted.
The economic impacts of the tourism industry tend to be positive in the locations where development is taking place. However, the same cannot be said, overall, for socio-cultural impact with the one often occurring at the expense of the other.
Quality assurance and pricing
The accommodation sector can be broken down into two broad segments, the informal sector and the formal sector.
The ‘informal’ sector comprises of B&B facilities and guesthouses and the ‘formal’ sector comprises of hotels and lodges. Regarding the quality of accommodation, inspects the standards in the hospitality and accommodation industry.
This voluntary grading system, which was launched in the recent past, uses internationally recognized star insignia to rate accommodation establishments. Once graded, establishments are encouraged to use the star system for marketing and advertising purposes. Thus, the responsibility for marketing remains with the entrepreneur.
Due to excessively high lodging tariffs, informed tourists opt to stay with friends, if they have this option, as hotel prices are regarded as outrageous. “Although the exchange rates are good, tourists refuse to spend so much money on a hotel room that is cheaper back home. They like to enjoy as much as we can without spending too much of their money on pricey accommodation”.
Matching supply chain with demand
The definition of tourism supply Chain should result from the overall definition of tourism and can thus be defined as the supply of all assets, services and goods to be enjoyed or bought by visitors and occasioned by the journeys of visitors.
The general purpose of statistics on tourism supply is to assess the contribution of the tourism sector to a country's general socio-economic process and to identify the effects of tourism, distinguishing between direct effects and indirect or induced effects.
Most of the tourists arrive to appreciate the natural beauty of the country Sri Lanka beauty is found in its diversity, which includes a generally hot and sunny climate, varied scenery and unspoiled wilderness areas, accessible wildlife, diverse cultures, activities like bird-watching, hiking, hunting, river rafting and diving and other resources of an ethno-cultural, archaeological, geological and paleontological nature. These all add up to produce the ‘supply Chain of tourism’, which consists of an amalgamation, or mix of attractions.
Measurement of demand is calculated in several ways. The occupancy rates of the available beds increase within the ambit of the range of growth factors. Thus, the point at which the demand for beds exceeds their supply can be established. This is done according to the star rating of beds available so that the demand for a level of supply might be calculated even though the star rating system is not fully operational in most of the facilities.
An analysis of tourism demand is required to take the volatile nature of tourism into account, particularly as far as international tourism is concerned. International tourists are generally quick to abandon a formerly popular destination because of threats to health or security. Trends in tourism, including tourism destinations, take into account changing demands for the type of tourism product required.
As tourists become more sophisticated their requirements change, as can be noted by the increasing numbers of people involved in adventure tourism, which is becoming increasingly dominant in coastal area as an option serving the international tourism market. Demographic influences on the supply of the tourism product are also critical.
Sri Lanka has a notably high annual population growth rate of 1 to, 2% and this too is increasing the pressure on the tourism market of the country
International tourism growth strategy
International Tourism Growth strategy includes an analysis of core markets and their segments. Priority markets were identified in Europe, Asia and Africa.
The Country Growth Strategy was particularly aimed at achieving the desired goals.
Business market
The fastest growing segment of the tourist market is business tourism demand. Business people around the world travel to different venues for conferences and meetings. The expectations and needs of business tourists are different from those of general tourists, and seems to understand these needs and offers professional levels of service excellence, which corner a large section of the market.
In-route market
The concept of route tourism demand is considered in both global and more local idiom. ‘Route tourism’ is not defined in an official or international sense. It is a relatively new concept in tourism and therefore has been borrowed and adapted to cover a broad spectrum of tourism product types.
The literature review revealed that, in a global context, well-known routes are most often, and most successfully, defined as point-to-point trips with a clear beginning and end.
The tourist can join the route in the middle or at either end, but it is a defined path with destinations to visit along the way. Each destination along the route complies with a consistent theme, and the destinations have developed somewhat organically over a long period.
The routes generally cover very large geographical spaces. This kind of route tourismchain is usually used as a mechanism to attract tourists to an area and to link several attractions that would independently not have the potential to entice visitors to spend time and money. Using a synergy effect promises to have greater pulling power and dispenses visitors’ money among a larger number of recipients
Niche market
By one definition, a niche is something perfectly suited to a person or thing. Despite varied interpretations in the tourism industry, niche tourism refers to tourism offerings that appeal to a particular special interest grouping, sometimes to the exclusion of their standing as a general tourism offering.
Niche tourism requires that the market be segmented into groupings or themes with which visitors identify themselves or their experience while on a trip. Increased access to travel information, as well as the increased sophistication of travelers, can, in part, be cited for the increase in niche tourism and niche product offerings.
Many tourism practitioners in the country incorrectly associate niche tourism with eco-tourism or cultural tourism in marginalized areas.
This has clearly stemmed from the supply-side approach to development, while ignoring the huge opportunities that niche markets offer throughout the world.
Conclusion
The tourism industry showed constant growth over the past few decades and has been resistant to economic and political changes. It is also now recognized as the world’s greatest generator of employment creating one new job for every tourist visiting Sri Lanka.
By the end of 2020, the total employment figure created by the entire travel and tourism industry in Sri Lankais expected to reach above the 3 million marks. However, Sri Lanka still needs to realize its full potential in terms of international tourism and especially the ecotourism sector.
By developing the tourism industry, the potential is there to achieve the objectives of the post any Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) and subsequent national development strategies. Some of the benefits of tourism include additional employment opportunities, increased awareness of other cultures and concern about the environment. The internationally accepted Manila Declaration of 1980 states that the aim of tourism is to improve the quality of life and to create better living conditions for all people.
Since tourism is now the world’s largest industry, Sri Lanka has the potential to benefit greatly from the growing tourism market. All that is needed are individuals and organizations with vision, willing to look beyond the problems and to develop and market our destinations, and in so doing, create awareness, pride and unity.
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