Finding solutions to develop Vietnam tourism quickly and sustainably

Attending the conference were Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha, leaders of ministries, departments, sectors and localities; Vietnam Tourism Association, economic and tourism experts; representatives of major enterprises in the tourism and aviation sectors...

At the Hanoi bridge, the conference was attended by Vice Chairman of the City People's Committee Nguyen Manh Quyen.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh chaired the conference.

Identifying problems to find practical solutions

Speaking at the opening of the conference, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized: Tourism is identified as a key economic sector according to Resolution No. 08-NQ/TW dated January 16, 2017 of the Politburo, contributing significantly to creating jobs and livelihoods for people, eliminating hunger and reducing poverty, attracting investment, promoting growth and restructuring the economy, preserving and promoting traditional, historical and cultural values of the nation, improving the material and spiritual life of the people. At the same time, tourism is a practical and effective bridge of international exchange, for tourists from all over the world to visit, experience, understand more, share more, and love more the country, culture and people of Vietnam.

Recognizing the opportunities and challenges that Vietnamese tourism is still facing in the context of the complicated and difficult world situation, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said that the tourism industry still faces many difficulties but also has many opportunities and advantages.

“The issue is to work together to best exploit opportunities, identify and resolve difficulties, and overcome challenges,” the Prime Minister emphasized.

Vietnam's tourism has improved in the past 10 months. By the end of October 2023, the total number of international tourists reached about 10 million, domestic tourists reached 99 million. However, the number of international tourists in the first 10 months of 2023 was only 70% compared to the same period in 2019 (before the pandemic). Domestic tourists, after a period of strong growth in 2022, are showing signs of slowing down. The tourism industry is facing many challenges, obstacles, many problems that have lasted for many years and many terms and have not been resolved.

To develop tourism into a spearhead economic sector in accordance with the direction of the Politburo, to achieve the goal of welcoming at least 35 million international visitors and 120 million domestic visitors by 2025, and 50 million international visitors and 160 million domestic visitors by 2030, the Prime Minister said that Vietnam needs to truly innovate its thinking and approach with creative, breakthrough, synchronous and effective measures; implement "close linkage, smooth coordination and comprehensive cooperation. The tourism industry needs to clearly identify opportunities and challenges; share successful experiences of Vietnam and other countries in the world, good practices and valuable lessons; associations, businesses, researchers, experts and each ministry, industry and locality together discuss and propose breakthrough, specific and feasible solutions to remove difficulties and overcome challenges...

At the conference, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung also presented the current situation of Vietnam's tourism industry, identifying the challenges of the tourism industry in the context of competition with other countries. In addition to the achievements such as the tourism industry receiving 54 international awards, Minister Nguyen Van Hung said that the number of international tourists to Vietnam is still not as expected, the recovery is still slow compared to some countries in the region. The reasons are that some traditional markets are slow to open; the trend of tourists choosing nearby destinations instead of distant destinations; inflation factors affecting the number of international visitors to Vietnam in recent times.

Frankly acknowledging the reality of the tourism industry after the Covid-19 pandemic, Chairman of the Vietnam Tourism Association Vu The Binh also said that although the number of international visitors has reached 10 million, exceeding the plan, this number is still low. After the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnam tourism has fallen into a state of chaos, competition, and price increases.

"During the Covid-19 pandemic, businesses and localities were closely connected, had many strongly linked products, and supported prices, so there were many good products. But after Covid-19, that connection disappeared, and tourism experienced price competition. Many high-priced products caused the number of visitors to decrease," said Mr. Vu The Binh.

Continued update...

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