Cooperation in developing tourism in the Mekong sub-region in the period 1990 - 2020

(Source: http://baodautu.vn/khai-thac-tiem-nang-du-lich-tieu-vung-me-kong-mo-rong-d28462.html)

At the conference within the framework of the Mekong Tourism Forum, Mr. Le Khanh Hai, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said: Vietnam is very pleased to host this Forum in Da Nang City, a key national tourism city and the end point of the East-West Economic Corridor.

This year's forum is a really good opportunity for national tourism agencies in the region, international organizations, and tourism businesses to discuss and propose proposals to promote public-private cooperation, increase resources for investment in product development, and promote advertising. These will be important conditions for implementing the Sub-regional Tourism Marketing Plan for the period 2015-2020, towards

towards the goal of making the Mekong Subregion a common attractive destination for tourists".

In recent times, countries in the region have attracted the attention of tourists, businesses and investors. In 2014, the number of tourists to the GMS reached nearly 54 million, accounting for 20.5% of the total number of tourists in the Asia-Pacific region. Tourism activities have brought in more than 61 billion USD in revenue, contributing to economic restructuring, contributing significantly to the GDP of countries, and actively contributing to poverty reduction. According to Mr. Hai's assessment: To achieve the above results, in addition to the cooperative efforts of governments and the active contributions of relevant parties, it is necessary to mention the role of businesses, associations and investors directly involved in the process of promoting regional tourism development .

According to the World Tourism Organization, since 2002, the number of international visitors to the GMS has increased continuously, with an average growth rate of about 12% per year. In 2014, the sub-region welcomed nearly 54 million international visitors, an increase of 8.2% compared to 2013, accounting for about 20% of the total number of visitors to Asia - Pacific; international tourism revenue reached over 61 billion USD. To meet the increasing demand of tourists, tourism products, technical service facilities and human resources for tourism are being gradually invested in, increased in quantity and improved in quality.

It is forecasted that in 2016 and the following years, the Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism will face a number of difficulties and challenges due to the impacts of climate change, natural disasters, epidemics, political instability in some areas and greater competition from other countries and regions that are stepping up investment and promotion for tourism development. In order to overcome the challenges and ensure sustainable growth of the Subregion Tourism, the Tourism Industry of the 6 GMS countries needs to continue to make efforts, contribute responsibly to the common development and seek support and cooperation from strategic investors and development partners to

Launch new tourism products with high quality, capable of competing with other regions in the world, affirming the tourism brand of the Sub-region based on the brand strength of the Mekong River, attracting a large number and meeting the needs of tourists inside and outside the region.

In that spirit, the Mekong Tourism Forum 2015 took place over 4 days (from June 15-18, 2015). The Forum included many important events such as the Mekong Tourism Conference, the 35th Mekong Tourism Working Group meeting and seminars on tourism products, marketing and tourism investment, chaired by the leaders of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the leaders of the General Department of Tourism and the leaders of the People's Committee of Da Nang City.

The entire Forum event will attract over 600 delegates. The technical sessions will be an opportunity for GMS National Tourism Organizations and development partners to discuss the draft GMS Tourism Strategy, including the GMS Marketing Strategy, GMS Action Plan and Priority Projects for the period 2015-2020, as well as the legal status of the Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Cooperation Coordinating Office (MTCO).

The three thematic seminars are events for all delegates interested in tourism in the GMS region, attracting the participation of many leading scholars and experts from prestigious international organizations and businesses such as the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the Pacific Asia Tourism Association (PATA), the Adventure Travel Association (ATTA), Facebook, Tripadvisor, etc. These seminars not only create opportunities for individuals and organizations operating in the tourism and related fields to meet, connect, and share experiences, but also support in orienting the development of specific products, promoting brands and attracting investment according to the most prominent trends in world tourism today.

Table 4 : Market distribution by countries in the Mekong sub-region in 2014 (unit: USD)

(Source: http://www.mekongtourism.org/about/tourism-performance/)

Key Indicators \|	Cambodia	PDR Tuberculosis	Myanmar	Thailand	Vietnam	Total
	Top Ten Markets
1	China (PRC)	560,335	422,440	125,609	4,636,298	1,947,236	7,691,918
2	Malaysia	144,437	24,312	46,532	2,613,418	332,994	3,161,693
3	Thailand	279,457	2,043,761	198,229		246,874	2,768,321
4	Vietnam	905,801	1,108,332	-	559,415		2,573,548
5	Korea (ROK)	424,424	96,085	58,472	1,122,566	847,958	2,549,505
6	Japan	215,788	44,877	83,434	1,267,886	647,956	2,259,941
7	Russia	108,601	13,340	4,835	1,606,430	364,873	2,098,079
8	PDR Tuberculosis	460,191		-	1,053,983	136,636	1,650,810
9	USA	191,366	61,460	62,631	763,520	443,776	1,522,753
10	Australia	134,167	44,964	29,175	831,854	321,089	1,361,249
11	UK	133,306	39,061	40,921	907,877	202,256	1,323,421
12	Singapore	65,855	9,621	47,692	844,133	202,436	1,169,737
13	France	141,052	52,146	41,453	635,073	213,745	1,083,469
14	Germany	84,143	29,800	32,265	715,240	142,345	1,003,793
15	India	28,529	4,547	32,306	932,603	-	997,985
16	Cambodia		15,342	-	550,339	404,159	969,840
17	Taiwan	97,528	5,478	32,664	394,149	388,998	918,817

Maybe you are interested!

Source: GMS member countries, ADB, PATA, WTTC

Table 5 : Statistics of GMS visitors in 2015

(unit: person, day, %)

(Source: http://www.mekongtourism.org/about/tourism-performance/)

Only	Cambodia	PDR Tuberculosis	Myanmar	Thailand	Vietnam	China \|	China \|
	Tourists
1	Number of visitors	4,775,231	4,684,429	4,681,020	29,881,091	7,943,651	3,824,88	2,094,90
2	Average time	6.80	4.75	9.00	9.69	9.70		2.13
3	Arrival area
	3.1 Asia –	3,558,728	4,328,017	938,487	21,275,750	4,951,494	2,580.98	1,505.70
	3.2 Europe	719,134	217,307	224,733	5,629,122	1,208,365	766,453	338,900
	3.3 Americas	315,526	88,987	93,441	1,235,095	581,234	298,011	183,900
	3.4 Asia	157,960	39,463	35,566	921,355	335,681	120,066	55,700
	3.5 Africa	9,238	10.65 5	3,829	161,640	507.09 1	6,847	5,700
	3.6 Middle East	14,645	10.65 5	5,527	658,129	507.09 1	-	-
	Detail %
4	% of visitors	50.50	11.11	25.79	84.44	78.95	-	-
5	% of visitors	47.40	88.88	73.66	14.96	18.92	-	-
6	% of visitors	2.10	-	0.55	0.60	2.14	-	-

- About the Mekong Tourism Development Project (MTDP) : The MTDP is funded by ADB, helping to improve tourism-related infrastructure in GMS countries (Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam), support community-based tourism projects in rural areas, support private sector participation in tourism promotion and marketing, establish mechanisms to strengthen regional cooperation, and support cross-border tourist flows. The following are the main results of the project:

- In Laos:

+ Luang Namtha Night Market:

The site has become a gathering point for the people of Luang Namtha, one of the few public spaces in the town, and is home to 57 women and 3 men selling food and handicrafts. There are about 200 producers of agricultural and handicraft products living in the surrounding villages. According to a 2009 survey, the market is expected to generate a minimum annual revenue of US$211,000 for vendors compared to US$0 in 2006 before the MTDP project support [4, p.35]

+ Ban Vieng Neua Cultural Center:

The centre is an example of a successful resettlement programme, an intangible heritage support initiative, with moderate success in tourism. Ban Vieng Neua was relocated (500-800m from its current location), to rebuild the runway of Luang Namtha airport. The MTDP project worked with the village to establish a Tai Kalorm (an ethnic group living in the area) music performance group, and built a replica of a traditional Tai Kalorm house, where the village hosts traditional food, music and dance performances. About 16 young men and women have now become talented artists and are regularly invited to perform for official delegations[34]. They also

performing at provincial and regional festivals and performing on stage at local restaurants.

+ Ban Nam Dee Waterfall:

Ban Nam Dee is the first village you pass through on the way to Ban Sida. Here, the Lanten ethnic community has been granted a ‘Community Trust’ to operate the nearby Nam Dee waterfall. The MTDP project helped to establish this mechanism between provincial and village authorities in 2007. The community has worked out an impressive community management mechanism, which distributes 50% of the entrance fee as an annual ‘dividend’ to each of the 59 households living there, and there are also several kiosks at the site built with MTDP support for villagers to sell handicrafts, food and drinks.

+ Picnic in Luang Namtha:

With support from ADB and other development partners such as UNESCO and New Zealand Aid, Luang Namtha is now recognised as a hub for safaris and ecotourism activities in Laos. In 1999, there were no officially licensed jungle safaris and no private tour operators in the province. Today, there are 13 local tour operators, over 70 safaris and around 130 villages involved in tourism activities. The change in tourist numbers is partly due to ADB funding for the Luang Namtha airport.

- In Cambodia:

MTDP project support to improve road access to the genocide memorial site has created dozens of jobs and opportunities for local Khmer people to sell their goods, increasing land values by at least tenfold. These sites also have better environmental management, especially drainage. The site, often referred to as the killing fields, is a vivid illustration.

about an infrastructure project that helped turn a place of pain into opportunity for the poor.

- In Vietnam:

My Tho River Wharf: is one of the connecting points to the islands in the Mekong Delta, with this wharf attracting visitors to farmers' gardens and other emerging community-based tourism initiatives. For example, a local cooperative currently employs 100 women to row visitors through canals and fruit gardens, earning over 100,000 VND per day [15,25]. This destination is noted in travel programs on things to do outside of Ho Chi Minh City.

Next, we can mention the Marketing and tourism promotion project: all GMS countries (estimated cost of 5 million USD), will the Mekong sub-region reach 60 million tourists by 2020? The Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) has developed a marketing and promotion program to reach 60 million international tourists to the Mekong sub-region by 2020. The campaign to explore the Mekong River with the slogan: "Six countries... One river" . [11, p. 1]

The Mekong subregion is the fastest growing tourism destination in the world – generating high foreign exchange earnings, creating jobs, and contributing significantly to economic growth. The GMS countries have a competitive advantage in tourism – reflected in their high growth rates – but need to harness tourism more effectively as a tool to reduce poverty and promote broad-based economic growth. Future growth in the sector is limited, however, due to a lack of coordinated tourism promotion and marketing efforts, difficulties in access, lack of tourism infrastructure, and lack of policies and institutional capacity to promote private sector participation, and impunity.

general force to facilitate the movement of tourists to and within the subregion.

Tourism in the GMS has become increasingly multinational; in a highly competitive global tourism industry, the GMS can survive and thrive if only it promotes the subregion as a single tourism destination. GMS countries have recognized the advantages of cooperation to develop new products, improve policy environments and institutional capacity, enhance promotion and marketing, and establish public-private partnerships. Subregional cooperation is therefore vital for the continued growth of tourism in the subregion.

3.2. Some development orientations

After 16 years of formation and development, the Mekong sub-regional cooperation program has achieved many more achievements, the total export of GMS countries has increased by 400% (in 2005 alone, intra-subregional export increased 15 times compared to 1992), foreign investment in GMS countries increased by 4 billion USD in just 4 years (2002-2006), the number of annual tourists to the sub-region increased from 10 million in 1995 to 22 million in 2006 [11, p. 35], the above figures show that the past journey of GMS has gradually progressed towards the common goal of promoting economic growth, sustainable development, poverty reduction and improving the lives of people along this river basin. Currently, it is possible to point out some points of concern when cooperating in economic development as follows:

Cultural characteristics of the communities of residents - ethnic groups in the Mekong sub-region: San (Thai) groups Yoang, Yung, Noi, Lu, Karen... (Mianmar); Thai, San... (Thailand); Lao (Laos), Khmer, Hoa... (Cambodia); Khmer, Hoa, Viet, Cham... (Vietnam); etc. Tourism products of localities in the Mekong sub-region, product promotion work, human resources need to be implemented. Developing tourism products based on the cultural values of ethnic groups in the Mekong sub-region. It is necessary to clearly identify the current status of tourism activities.

Cooperation in developing tourism in the Mekong sub-region in the period 1990 - 2020 - 10

Comment