During a meeting with VFS Global representatives in Hanoi on March 12, Nguyen Thi Hoa Mai, deputy director of the Vietnam National Authority of Tourism (VNAT), noted that Vietnam’s tourism industry continued to record strong growth in 2025, expanding by around 21.2%, well above the average growth rate in the Asia-Pacific region, estimated at about 8%, as well as the global tourism growth rate of around 5%.

The positive performance is seen as an important foundation for Vietnam to accelerate recovery efforts, boost promotional activities and attract more international visitors in the coming years, Mai said.

Highly appreciating VFS Global’s experience and capabilities, the VNAT leader highlighted the company’s extensive cooperation with governments around the world, including many countries in Asia. In addition to visa and consular services, the company has also supported destination promotion campaigns, national branding initiatives and international tourism marketing programmes.

At the meeting, Amar Rijhwani, Associate Head – Business Development, Australasia, VFS Global, affirmed the company is interested in gaining a deeper understanding of Vietnam’s tourism development strategy in order to propose suitable cooperation initiatives.

In Asia, VFS Global has partnered with several countries, including Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines and Indonesia, to support tourism promotion efforts.

With its global network and partnerships with media organisations and travel agencies, he said, the company could help promote Vietnam’s tourism image in priority markets.

One model highlighted during the discussion is the “Tourism Kiosk”, information counters installed at VFS Global visa application centers in markets such as China, India and countries in the Middle East.

At these kiosks, travelers applying for visas can access information, images and promotional videos about major destinations. The model helps raise awareness of destinations and inspire travel interest at an early stage of the visa process.

VFS Global could also help connect Vietnam with international travel agencies through tourism associations, particularly in China and India, thereby introducing Vietnam’s destinations to the tourism business community in those markets.

In addition, the company can support communications, marketing and public relations campaigns on media and social media platforms to enhance global awareness of Vietnam’s tourism offerings.

According to the VFS Global representative, the company’s experience working with national tourism organisations could help design promotional strategies tailored to specific international markets.

Potential cooperation activities may include analysing target visitor segments, developing tourism products suited to different cultures and markets, implementing marketing and communication campaigns, connecting tourism businesses, and organising tourism promotion events in key destinations.

The company also expressed willingness to consider launching pilot projects to promote Vietnam’s tourism in major markets and investing resources in joint promotional programs.

For her part, Mai revealed that VNAT plans to organise tourism promotion programmes in key markets in 2026 and hopes VFS Global will support outreach by connecting partners and strengthening communications.

In the initial phase, both sides agreed to maintain information exchange and explore the possibility of piloting cooperative activities in several priority markets. Based on the results by the end of 2026, they will consider expanding cooperation in the future to further enhance Vietnam’s tourism image and attract more international visitors.

Founded in 2001, VFS Global currently operates in 165 countries, including Vietnam, with more than 3,900 visa application centers and partnerships with 69 governments worldwide. In addition to visa services, the company has also implemented tourism promotion initiatives for various destinations around the world.

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