The future is female, but sadly, much of the time, women are undervalued and disregarded. Fifty-two percent of Sri Lanka’s population are women, but for a variety of reasons, only 10% of those working in Sri Lanka’s hospitality industry are women.
The newly launched Hilton Liya Diriya project aims to fix this. Translating to “female courage”, Hilton Liya Diriya aims to provide training opportunities for local female students who are keen to build a career for themselves in the hospitality industry. This hospitality-focused skill development programme is intended to upskill its participants and equip them with the knowledge and skills to secure livelihoods and careers. The programme consists of seven months of theory-based workshops and training with the Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management (SLITHM) followed by six months of industrial traineeship at one of Hilton’s properties in Sri Lanka. Participants of Hilton Liya Diriya will also receive mentorship from senior leaders of the Hilton family. 
Hilton in Sri Lanka Area General Manager Manesh Fernando explained that Hilton Liya Diriya was initially conceptualised in 2019 as part of Hilton’s larger Travel with Purpose 2030 goal of doubling its social impact investment and halving its global carbon footprint, with Hilton’s senior leadership staying committed to conceptualising and executing the programme despite the many challenges thrown at the tourism industry over the last two years. Fernando also explained that Hilton Liya Diriya is intended to create a positive impact for communities in Sri Lanka through empowering women. He said: “The programme goes a long way in upskilling labour who are currently working at home to move into the hospitality industry and even go abroad to hotels there.”
Hilton is committed to continuing the 102-year-old legacy and ethos of its founder Conrad Hilton, who believed that “travel can make the world a better place”, and transform the economies of the communities around them. Hilton in South East Asia Operations Vice President Paul Hutton spoke on Sri Lanka’s tourism potential which has taken a beating, first with the 2010 Easter Sunday attacks and then with the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, saying: “Despite the challenges caused by the pandemic, we continue to recognise its long-term prospects and have doubled down on our commitment to putting Sri Lanka on the global roadmap with the recent opening of DoubleTree by Hilton Weerawila Rajawarna Resort in November – our third Hilton property in the country. Through the introduction of Hilton Liya Diriya, we hope to leverage our scale and capacity to advance women’s economic empowerment in the country by identifying and developing the best local talents, and I look forward to seeing them excel in their careers with us.”
Sri Lanka Tourism Chairperson Kimarli Fernando shared at the event that Sri Lanka Tourism aspires to achieve a higher level of participation of women in Sri Lanka’s tourism and hospitality industry, especially in the skilled and value-creation areas. “It is important to recognise the economic and social accomplishment of women,” Fernando said, adding: “The advancement of our society relies very much on empowering women.”
Fernando also explained that by nature, women, especially in an Asian context, are brought up differently, and deal with double standards, hypocrisy, and discrimination from a very young age and many women face daily struggles with sexual harassment and gender stereotypes, and that part of why only 10% of the hospitality workforce is women, is that there is a stigma to joining the industry that women need to deal with because of perceptions of safety within the industry.
Recognising these issues and empowering women are the first steps of positive change. Fernando encouraged companies like Hilton to come forward and allow students to visit their hotels and see their accommodation and how safe it is. She also encouraged talking to principals, teachers, and religious leaders about how safe the tourism industry is and enlist their support in promoting tourism and hospitality to women and girls as respectable careers, adding: “Education is the greatest game changer for women and girls around the world.”
Fernando also stressed that it is important to remember the many sacrifices women make for their careers and encouraged all women to accept the challenges they face and break free of traditional gender roles to become the women they want to be. “You cannot be the best in everything,” Fernando said, adding: “When you have a career, there are a lot of sacrifices you need to make. You can’t be the best friend, the best neighbour, the best everything. Your family also needs to make sacrifices for your career. While sacrificing, remember that you are permanently balancing job roles. Accept, acknowledge, and try to live with that.”
On Hilton Liya Diriya, Fernando explained that the Hilton Liya Diriya programme is a major step forward in driving strategic change in the tourism and hospitality workforce and that Sri Lanka Tourism is delighted to be partnering with Hilton to drive this change, adding: “There is great pride in knowing we’re so willing to support each other.”
PHOTOS Eshan Dasanayaka
