Vietnamese official highlights Russia as an important tourism market of ASEAN

Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Doan Van Viet made the remarks during the second ASEAN- Russia Tourism Ministers Meeting, which was held in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, within the framework of the 2023 ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF 2023).

The upgrade of the meeting between the bloc and Russia from the Tourism Consultation to the Ministers Meeting from 2022 can be seen as a solid foundation in which to further foster co-operation between the two sides in the time ahead, Deputy Minister Viet noted.

The Deputy Minister said that the Tourism Work Plan for the 2022 to 2024 period, which was adopted by the first ASEAN-Russia Tourism Ministers' Meeting, has paved the way for further co-operation activities on promoting, training human resources, as well as ensuring safe tourism and connection between the two sides.

Therefore, in order to effectively implement the plan, it is necessary for both sides to enhance linkages and regular exchanges from working groups as a way of reaching consensus on priority activities and find suitable resources for the implementation of joint projects and activities, he said.

According to the official, in the future it will be essential to strengthen collaboration activities to promote digital advertising to the Russian market, spread the image of ASEAN tourism in Russia, whilst continuing to organise Russian language training courses for tourism workers and tour guides within the ASEAN region.

He also suggested seeking to intensify engagement in tourism activities of ASEAN in general, with a particular focus on Vietnam this year, such as the Vietnam International Travel Mart (VITM) in Hanoi and the International Travel Expo in Ho Chi Minh City.

The second ASEAN-Russia Tourism Ministers Meeting was chaired by Indonesian Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno and Russian Deputy Minister of Economic Development Vladimir Ilyichev.

At the event, the two sides noted that Southeast Asia is still a popular destination among Russian tourists despite the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a wish expressed to increase the number of visitors between ASEAN and Russia in the post-pandemic period, thereby contributing to speeding up the tourism recovery of both sides.

The meeting served to underline the importance of promoting sustainable and inclusive tourism between ASEAN and Russia under the ASEAN-Russia Tourism Work Plan for 2022 to 2024, as well as welcoming the activities identified in the recently adopted ASEAN Sustainable Tourism Development Framework.

Delegates highlighted a number of tourism-related outcomes achieved at the 17th East Asia Summit (EAS) on November 13, 2022, along with the role of tourism as one of the major contributors to economic growth, employment, social welfare, and the livelihoods of local communities. Specifically, the two sides will focus on implementing the EAS Leaders' Declaration on Economic Growth Through Tourism Recovery, adopted at the 16th EAS on October 27, 2021, and exploring the possibility of starting a dialogue on tourism between relevant agencies.

The meeting discussed measures aimed at stepping up efforts to implement programmes and activities under the ASEAN-Russia Tourism Work Plan for the 2022 to 2024 period, with greater emphasis placed on ensuring safety and comfort for tourists, as well as facilitating the movement of tourist flows between Russia and ASEAN countries.

The event served to reaffirm its commitments to implementing the agreed activities and tasked the ASEAN National Tourism Authorities and senior Russian officials with promoting the implementation of the work plan and augmenting further co-operation between the two sides.

Participants agreed that the global tourism outlook will be positive in 2023 and in the following years, affirming that digitalisation is one of the strategic priorities of the ASEAN Economic Community in 2023.