The ASEAN Community, scheduled to establish in 2015, is expected togreatly benefit tourism sector as the Mutual Recognition Arrangement onTourism Professionals (MRA-TP) among ASEAN members will take effect inall member countries.
The MRA-TP will serve as the foundation to lift tourism cooperation among ASEAN countries.
Currently, ASEAN has built common standards for six tourism areas,including reception, restaurant service and tour operation, with a total32 work titles, except for tour guide.
Experts heldthat Vietnam can apply the standards to save cost in building itsown. Vietnamese tourism companies can refer to the standards to improvetheir service quality and competitiveness. Furthermore, they can recruitqualified workers from other ASEAN countries.
Onthe part of domestic tourism workers, they have the chance to findbetter jobs and can easily move to other ASEAN countries.
However, challenges will also come, and the sector will not be able tomaximize the opportunities if it fails to enhance its competitiveness.
With the free movement of tourism professionalsamong ASEAN countries, Vietnamese tourism workers will face fiercecompetition from their regional rivals who are predicted to flock toVietnam. Meanwhile, the sector also faces a high risk of brain drainwhen qualified staff go elsewhere for better working conditions andpayment.
In that context, improvement of humanresources quality is becoming urgent for Vietnam’s tourism, which isconsidered key for the growth of the sector as well as a perquisitecondition for its international integration.
According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT),around 1.8 million employees are working in Vietnam’s tourismsector, a surge from only 12,000 in 1990. Each year, the sector needsnearly 40,000 new workers, but domestic training establishments graduateonly 15,000, resulting in a serious shortage of qualified staff.
In Ho Chi Minh City, as many as 45 percent of local tour guides andoperators, and 80 percent of receptionists lack adequate foreignlanguage skills, according to the municipal Department of Tourism.
So far, a number of response efforts have been carried out, includingthe issuance of a revised set of tourism occupational standards (VTOS)to suit international standards. The new VTOS was built by the EU-fundedenvironmentally and socially responsible tourism capacity enhancementprogramme.
According to statistics from VNAT, ASEANcountries welcomed 97.2 million foreign visitors in 2014, up 3 percentover the previous year, including 28.5 million who travelled inside thebloc.-VNA
The MRA-TP will serve as the foundation to lift tourism cooperation among ASEAN countries.
Currently, ASEAN has built common standards for six tourism areas,including reception, restaurant service and tour operation, with a total32 work titles, except for tour guide.
Experts heldthat Vietnam can apply the standards to save cost in building itsown. Vietnamese tourism companies can refer to the standards to improvetheir service quality and competitiveness. Furthermore, they can recruitqualified workers from other ASEAN countries.
Onthe part of domestic tourism workers, they have the chance to findbetter jobs and can easily move to other ASEAN countries.
However, challenges will also come, and the sector will not be able tomaximize the opportunities if it fails to enhance its competitiveness.
With the free movement of tourism professionalsamong ASEAN countries, Vietnamese tourism workers will face fiercecompetition from their regional rivals who are predicted to flock toVietnam. Meanwhile, the sector also faces a high risk of brain drainwhen qualified staff go elsewhere for better working conditions andpayment.
In that context, improvement of humanresources quality is becoming urgent for Vietnam’s tourism, which isconsidered key for the growth of the sector as well as a perquisitecondition for its international integration.
According to the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT),around 1.8 million employees are working in Vietnam’s tourismsector, a surge from only 12,000 in 1990. Each year, the sector needsnearly 40,000 new workers, but domestic training establishments graduateonly 15,000, resulting in a serious shortage of qualified staff.
In Ho Chi Minh City, as many as 45 percent of local tour guides andoperators, and 80 percent of receptionists lack adequate foreignlanguage skills, according to the municipal Department of Tourism.
So far, a number of response efforts have been carried out, includingthe issuance of a revised set of tourism occupational standards (VTOS)to suit international standards. The new VTOS was built by the EU-fundedenvironmentally and socially responsible tourism capacity enhancementprogramme.
According to statistics from VNAT, ASEANcountries welcomed 97.2 million foreign visitors in 2014, up 3 percentover the previous year, including 28.5 million who travelled inside thebloc.-VNA
