• January 6, 2010

A photographic guide to animals and plants of the dry lowlands of Sri Lanka will help tourists appreciate the country’s natural heritage. Wildlife writer and photojournalist Gehan de Silva Wijeyeratne created the 110-page, full-color Wildlife of the Dry Lowlands with financial assistance from The Competitiveness Program, a USAID supported project managed by Nathan Associates.

A Beautiful Book
Distribution of the book officially began during a ceremony in early December 2006 at the offices of TCP and attended by representatives of the Tourism Cluster, the Department of Wildlife Conservation, the Department of Forests, the Sri Lanka Tourist Board, and the Sri Lanka Hoteliers Association.
“Sri Lanka has long been a hidden treasure for lovers of wild flora and fauna,” said John Varley, Chief of Party for TCP. “This beautiful new publication will introduce lovers of nature from Sri Lanka and all over the world to the pristine beauty and exotic wildlife of the island’s dry lowlands.” Sri Lanka’s nature tour guides will also find the book useful for practical knowledge. TCP purchased 1,000 copies to distribute to tour guide trainers through the Tourism Cluster, Sri Lanka’s private sector group devoted to developing tourism.
A Broad Strategy
TCP is helping Sri Lanka’s tourism industry reposition Sri Lanka as a destination for tourists interested in more than tropical beaches. The Tourism Cluster, long supported by TCP, endorsed the Wildlife of the Dry Lowlands. The book suits the cluster’s drive to broaden the island’s appeal to tourists with parks, wildlife, and cultural treasures. The book provides the names of plants and animals in English, Sinhala, French, and German to ensure broad appeal to nature tourists from many countries.

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