People’s Bank partnered with the Central Cultural Fund (CCF), which falls under the Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs, to provide an e-Ticketing solution to be deployed at major tourist attractions in Sri Lanka.
An MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) for the partnership was inked and exchanged between the two institutions in the presence of Sujeewa Rajapakse, Chairman of People’s Bank, and Minister of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs Vidura Wickramanayaka. Somarathne Vidanapathirana, Secretary of Ministry of Buddhasasana, Religious and Cultural Affairs; Prof. Anura Manathunga, Director General of Archeology; Prof. Gamini Ranasinghe, Director General of the Central Cultural Fund and the other officials of CCF with the Board of Directors of People’s Bank and K.B. Rajapakse, Acting CEO/ GM of People’s Bank with the other corporate management members of People’s Bank were also present at the occasion. The state-of-the-art solution will be designed, developed, hosted, and maintained by People’s Bank in response to a request made by the CCF.
The new system streamlines the entire process and allows tourists to see the heritage sites virtually before visiting Sri Lanka. While providing the CCF with the opportunity to generate much-needed foreign currency and simplify internal processes, the solution also underscores the People’s Bank’s standing as the leader in digitalization in Sri Lanka’s banking industry.
The multi-lingual web-based solution will provide a Web app for purchasing tickets and Mobile apps for CCF for ticket verification. With the Internet Payment Gateway and Payment Solution integrated into the system, various payment methods can be used for payments. The solution will include the Ticket Servicing Module for the Admin and a Tour Agent Portal for authorized users.
The Web App will also provide a virtual tour of the heritage sites using Augmented Reality (AR) and a marketplace for purchasing souvenirs and publications online.
Central Cultural Fund is the principal heritage management institution in Sri Lanka. They mainly generate income through ticket sales to tourists who visit the many sites under the CCF, including Sigiriya, Polonnaruwa, Anuradhapura, and many others. For example, Sigiriya alone is visited by 2,000 to 3,000 tourists daily. CCF expects to increase tourist visits to these sites by offering them greater convenience and an enhanced experience, thus generating much-needed foreign currency for the country.
