The Party Chief made the suggestion while attending the first HCMC and Mekong Delta Tourism Connection Forum held on September 5 in the city with Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Ngoc Thien and other leaders of Mekong delta provinces and cities.
Party Chief Nhan said that for year, the tourism cooperation between HCMC and Mekong delta has not developed as much as expected; hence, HCMC considers the cooperation with Mekong delta and the Southeast as major work in the next time.
Emphasizing on the role of travel agents, Mr. Nhan said that while approximately 1,200 travel agents operate in HCMC, just a few travel agents operate in the Mekong delta and the Southeast hindering tourism connections between the region and other cities and provinces. These tourism agents must closely work together to develop the sector’s potential, he said.
In 2018, as he said, HCMC welcomed 7.5 million foreign visitors. However, the city authorities wanted to raise the number of tourists. Holiday-makers can enjoy sightseeing tours around HCMC and Mekong delta; accordingly, he said that it is needed to build brand names for HCMC and Mekong delta.
He proposed that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism should help to build the brand names as well as preserving historic and cultural relics in HCMC and Mekong delta provinces to include them in tourism marketing and promotion programs.
In addition, he wanted the government and the Ministry of Transport to invest more in traffic infrastructure in the two regions.
When it comes to tourism development plan in HCMC, Mr. Nhan shared about the use of digital technology solutions for smart tourism to enhance connections between destinations.
Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister Nguyen Ngoc Thien said that the country’s tourism industry has developed fast lately and become the driving force behind economic growth whereas the slowly developed “smoke-free” industry in the Mekong delta is not commensurate with the potential.
Mentioning the growth of tourism industry in next time, Minister Thien said that according to the plan, the country must welcome 32 million international visitors by 2025 and 110 million local holiday-makers earning $65 billion in turnover.
Therefore, the cooperation program between HCMC and the Mekong delta must be carefully prepared.
He noted the appealing of giant tourism enterprises in the cooperation program.
