Connecting regions by highways and large bridges
The Mekong Delta has an area of over 40,000 square kilometers and a total population of over 17 million people. This is a land with great potential and advantages for tourism development and is identified as one of the seven national tourism regions, with key products being eco-tourism, cultural-historical tourism, and island tourism...
Although there are many conditions for tourism development, in general, the growth rate of the region in recent times has not been as expected, including limitations and difficulties in building, developing tours, routes and specific tourism products.
According to Dr. Tran Huu Hiep, Vice President of the Mekong Delta Tourism Association, transportation is the blood vessel, creating a smooth space for regional connectivity.
According to Dr. Tran Huu Hiep, Vice President of the Mekong Delta Tourism Association, Decision 2227 approved the master plan for tourism development in the Mekong Delta until 2020, with a vision to 2030. It identifies two tourism spaces in the west and east of the region, and at the same time forms attractive and highly competitive tourism product lines.
In addition, Decision 194 of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism approving the project to build specific tourism products in the Mekong Delta also identifies a system of specific tourism products at the regional and national levels.
Dr. Hiep said that tourism spaces will be expanded from the integrated planning of the Mekong Delta and the connection from 13 planning documents of localities in the region.
In it, he emphasized that traffic is the blood vessel, the factor that creates a smooth space to implement regional connectivity.
"The Prime Minister's Decision 287 approving the Mekong Delta planning for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, sets the goal of investing in the construction and upgrading of about 830km of expressways by 2030; about 4,000km of national highways; four airports; 13 seaports, 11 passenger port clusters and 13 inland waterway cargo port clusters by 2030," said Dr. Hiep.
Dr. Hiep analyzed that the Mekong Delta has large vertical axes, cross-roads, and river bridges, especially the expressways Trung Luong - My Thuan; My Thuan - Can Tho; Can Tho - Hau Giang - Ca Mau; Chau Doc - Can Tho - Soc Trang; Lo Te - Rach Soi; My An - Cao Lanh.
Along with the above highways are more than 10 large bridges crossing rivers such as Can Tho, My Thuan, My Thuan 2, Rach Mieu, Cao Lanh, Ham Luong, Cai Lon, Nam Can, Dam Cung, Chau Doc, Dai Ngai bridges...
My Thuan 1 and 2 bridges span the Tien River. Together with the highways, large bridges spanning wide rivers play an important role in regional connectivity.
"These are the keys to opening up new development space, creating new momentum, linking sub-regions in the Long Xuyen quadrangle, the west of Hau River and Ca Mau peninsula, the East Coast and along the West Sea corridor, connecting with the super seaport Tran De included in the planning, awakening the potential of the Mekong Delta's marine economy and opening the "door" to the Southwest border.
These highways and large bridges will also have the task of connecting the western tourist space including: Can Tho, An Giang, Kien Giang, Dong Thap Hau Giang, Soc Trang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau with the eastern space including: Long An, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Vinh Long, Tra Vinh," he said.
Three competitive factors of tourism
At the workshop, Ms. Cao Thi Ngoc Lan, Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Tourism Association, said that it is necessary to enhance competitiveness and soon turn the Mekong Delta into a unique eco-tourism area of the country and the region.
According to Ms. Lan, competition in tourism is based on three factors: products, service quality and tourism promotion. Therefore, to improve the tourism level of the region, it is necessary to focus on investing in these three areas.
She also noted that the qualifications and skills of the workforce play a key role. We must focus on improving the quality of the tourism workforce and consider this a key task.
The green Au Islet (Can Tho) in the middle of the Hau River is a typical tourist destination of the river region.
In addition, according to Ms. Lan, regions and localities need to focus on building unique tourism products. The Mekong Delta has rich tourism resources, but to be attractive, it needs to create differences.
However, she still considers tourism a comprehensive economic sector, with inter-sectoral and inter-regional linkages and high socialization.
This association aims to promote the inherent strengths of each locality, thereby building and sustainably developing unique tourism products of the whole region.
Ms. Lan also believes that the development of policies for tourism development also needs special attention. In particular, the State needs to focus on general support for research, construction and development of tourism products suitable to new needs and trends, especially green tourism, of which the Mekong Delta is a place rich in potential.
After the Covid-19 pandemic, tourism in the Mekong Delta has made a strong recovery. It is estimated that in 2023, the total number of visitors to the Mekong Delta will reach nearly 45 million, an increase of 20.4% over the same period in 2022. Of which, international visitors will reach more than 1.8 million, an increase of more than three times compared to 2022. Revenue will reach nearly 46,000 billion VND, an increase of 42.6% over the same period in 2022.
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