An international conference to promote tourism and investment was held in Ho Chi Minh City on September 13 to implement the joint declaration on tourism cooperation between Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam.

 

Present at the conference were senior officials from the four countries’ tourism ministries and nearly 300 guests including authors, international investors, and domestic and foreign travel agents.

 

The main issues included the role of tourism projects in the “Four-Countries – One Destination” programme, orientations for tourism development, and an exhibition of projects to attract investment into provinces and cities in the four countries, as well as measures to develop transportation projects linking the regions to facilitate travel and economic, cultural and tourism exchanges.

 

Host Vietnam will introduce tourism potential and 71 tourism projects in the Mekong Delta region.

 

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, tourism turnover in the Mekong region in 2010 was estimated at US$22.1 billion. In the future, Mekong countries, including Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, should coordinate in building sustainable tourism projects to reduce poverty, train human resources, and promote tourism to raise their positions and be able to compete with other countries in the region.