Ha Long bay in Quang Ninh province (Source: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - The ASEAN Tourism Forum 2019 (ATF 2019)will take place in Ha Long City, the northern coastal province of Quang Ninh,from January 14-18 next year, themed “ASEAN - the Power of One”.
As the second event of its kind in Vietnam, the forum is expected to helpVietnam promote its beautiful landscapes, cultural identities, traditions and historyto international friends.
According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism under the Ministryof Culture, Sports and Tourism, the event aims to concretise cooperation among ASEANcountries, towards the ASEAN region "One Vision, One Identity, OneCommunity" with the goal of prosperity and sustainable development.
Various activities will be held during the forumsuch as the meeting between ASEAN tourism ministers, meetings between officialsof ASEAN National Tourism Organisations (NTOs), the ATF Travel Exchange (TRAVEX)and more.
The meeting of ASEAN tourism ministers will focus on measures to enhancecompetitiveness, standardise and develop human resources for tourism andpromote sustainable tourism.
TRAVEX, the annual specialised tourism fair, is expected to provideopportunities for local tourism firms and their partners from key markets toboost ties and promote their products.
Ceremonies to announce the book “Tourism stories” in Vietnam and to present theASEAN Tourism Award will be included in the forum.
First launched in 1981 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, the ATF is the biggest annualevent of ASEAN tourism cooperation, which aims to promote ASEAN as one touristdestination with sustainable development.
It involves all the tourism industry sectors ofthe 10 ASEAN member states, namely Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
Since 1998, Vietnam has participated in the ATF, as well as meetings andactivities in the framework of the forum.
It joined national tourism agencies of the ASEAN member nations in detailing theaction programme for the implementation of the ASEAN tourism agreement, whichfocuses on opening the tourism market among the ASEAN countries, improving thequality of tourism services, human resources development and safe tourism.
The ATF in Vietnam in 2009 approved many important initiatives and proposals,contributing to bolstering tourism cooperation among regional countries.
In recent years, Vietnam has become known as a tourist destination with dynamicdevelopment, which is highlighted by its unique cultural and historical values,beautiful natural scenery and friendly people.
The country aims to develop tourism into a spearhead economic sector in thenational economy. In 2017, Vietnam welcomed 13 million international touristsand served 74 million domestic visitors.
In the first half of this year, foreign arrivals to the countryreached nearly 7.9 million, up 27.2 percent from the same period of 2017.
Quang Ninh has a coastline of more than 250kilometres and more than 2,000 islands and islets which account for two-thirdsof the total number in Vietnam. The province hopes to welcome 12 million visitors this year,including five million foreigners and earn 22 trillion VND (968 million USD) intourism revenue.
Ha Long Bay, literally “descending dragon bay”, is a must-see destination inQuang Ninh. It was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1994 and 2000.
The bay spans 1,553 square kilometres and includes 1,969 islands of varioussizes. It features thousands of limestone karsts and islets in various shapesand sizes. The geo-diversity of the environment has created biodiversity inthe bay, including a tropical evergreen biosystem, oceanic and sea biosystem.Ha Long Bay is home to 14 endemic floral species and 60 endemic faunal species.-VNA
VNA
