Tourism development to contribute more to GDP growth

Hoang Su Phi is famous for rice terraced fields which consistently attract the great number of tourists each year. (Photo: Vnexpress)

Tourism products will be high-quality and able to compete with other countries. Tourism will become a hard currency earner contributing to national economic growth. 

The draft project on tourism development has set a target of attracting 15 million foreign tourists and achieving an average annual growth of 12 to 14% until 2020.

The sector also will try to contribute 9 or 10% of the GDP by 2020. Total revenue from tourism could reach US$32.5 billion and generate 3.5 million jobs.

To achieve these goals, the hospitality industry is doing its utmost to improve tourism promotion and advertisements and mobilize more social resources for tourism development.

The sector has created visa exemptions, reduced the time and cost of customs procedures, and developed transportation infrastructure.

Tran Son Hai, Vice Chairman of the Khanh Hoa provincial People’s Committee, said, “Localities have a lot of opinions about tourism’s contribution to the GDP and other benefits. Some localities still think of tourism merely as entertainment. With that view investment and incentives for tourism have not been given due attention.”

 According to a survey of more than 1,200 managers in the field, Vietnam ranks second in Asia and 16th in the world for tourism growth potential. But travel agents and companies have underscored the importance of attracting more foreign and domestic investment in infrastructure and tours.

Ha Van Sieu, Deputy Director of the Vietnam Administration of Tourism, said, “We should boost investment in key areas which require big foreign investors with strategic visions and leading capability in services. They will then help us lure smaller investors and create an overall development for Vietnam to meet the increasing demand.”

PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc spoke at the national conference on tourism development in Hoi An City. (Photo: vietnamtourism.gov.vn)

At a recent national conference on tourism development in Hoi An City, Quang Nam province, participants agreed on the need to involve the entire community in developing tourism and creating links between different sectors and fields.

To attract foreign tourists the government should adopt more favorable policies such as visa exemptions for tourists of certain countries and streamline immigration procedures for entering Vietnam.

Travel agencies and travel companies recognized the importance of master-planning to develop the sector and long-term tourism promotion that focuses strongly on national identity.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said at the conference that the government will ask the National Assembly to revise the Tourism Law to create a framework for making tourism a spearhead economic sector.

He said, “The law and policies should help tourism expand. We must also pay attention to the community’s participation in tourism to create a good impression of Vietnamese people. We organized this conference to promote local tourism with its friendly, smiling people. Hospitality is a tradition of Vietnam and it’s an important element of making tourism profitable.”

PM Phuc noted that Vietnam is rich in world cultural heritages and famous for its friendly people public order. These things attract tourists.

“All people should be involved in tourism development. It is a global trend but we need to tap all enterprises. It will be hard to be successful if our business system doesn’t develop,” according to Mr. Phuc.