Day: February 12, 2024

With impressive tourism recovery in 2023, shown in the substantial increase in both tourist arrivals and tourism revenue, localities in the Southeastern and Mekong Delta regions have made huge plans for 2024, solidifying their tourism brand, developing attractive offerings, and professional services.

2023 – a bonanza year for tourism sector

The southeastern localities of Ho Chi Minh City, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Binh Phuoc, Binh Duong, Dong Nai and Tay Ninh earned more than 180.56 trillion VND (7.35 billion USD) from hosting over 65.3 million tourist arrivals in 2023, up 22% and 18% year-on-year, respectively.

Last year, Ho Chi Minh City organised a kaleidoscope of vibrant tourism events and festivals such as Vietnamese Tet festival, Ao Dai festival and River festival, which brought interesting new experiences to visitors.

Ba Ria-Vung Tau boasting strength in resort and cultural tourism, and Tay Ninh bestowed with stunning natural landscapes also witnessed strong growth in tourism revenue.

Tourist attractions
in Mekong Delta also impressed visitors with their standout cultural, spiritual and eco-tourism products. Almost all localities in the region maintained their lustre with the number of arrivals and amount of tourism earning escalating.

Striving for new targets in 2024

The tourism sector of the southern localities has outlined specific measures to attract more visitors in 2024.

Ho Chi Minh City will continue joining hands with localities nationwide to branch out tourism offerings, while focusing on improving the quality of healthcare, waterway, golf and community-based tourism. Besides, tourism promotion events and programmes will be organised to introduce the city’s tourist destinations in potential and key markets.

Ba Ria-Vung Tau will roll out a project to diversify tourism models that are able to create added value, and contribute to affirming the province’s tourism brand, attracting more tourists and encouraging them to pay more and lengthen their stay.

At least one night-time tourism model that high
lights local typical products and services will be developed in Xuyen Moc and Con Dao districts and Vung Tau and Ba Ria cities this year. By 2030, night entertainment complexes will be set up in Xuyen Moc and Vung Tau while local night-time tourism brands will be formed and developed, making contributions to promoting high-quality and sustainable tourism.

Meanwhile in Kien Giang province, the Department of Tourism eyes 9.2 million tourist arrivals, and expects to gain 20 trillion VND (814.3 million USD) from tourism services.

Southern localities preparing for tourism upswing in 2024 hinh anh 2

Tourists in Phu Quoc island, the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang (Photo: VNA)

Accordingly, the province will develop high-quality accommodations, top-notch eco-resorts and entertainment zones, and improving service quality. Along with community-based tourism, it will develop traditional craft and OCOP products so as to diversify and increase the attractiveness to local tourism offerings.

Targeting 4.9 million v
isitors, Bac Lieu province will concentrate on completing and improving service quality in several tourist destinations, attracting investments in Tac Say tourism site and the Lap Dien bird sanctuary.

The province will also capitalise on its traditional craft and agricultural production to shape up unique tourism products./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Ho Chi Minh City welcomed around 75,000 foreign tourist arrivals over five days since the start of the Tet holiday (February 8) to February 12, or the third day of the first lunar month, up 15.4% year-on-year, according to the municipal Department of Tourism.

During the Tet holiday that will last until February 14, the city is expected to serve 1.8 million visitors, a year-on-year rise of 5.9%.

Revenue is estimated at 6.55 trillion VND (268.1 million USD), up 4% year-on-year.

The increases were attributed to the city’s organisation of activities to welcome the Lunar New Year of the Dragon and its efforts to improve the quality of tourism products./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Ho Chi Minh City will implement different measures to promote the digital economy, with the goal that it will contribute 20% to the city’s gross regional domestic product (GRDP) by 2025, and 40% by 2030.

In 2021, for the first time, Ho Chi Minh City assessed the contribution of the digital economy to its GRDP from a scientific research perspective, at 15.38% (excluding e-commerce and sharing economy). The figure was estimated at 18.66% in 2022, and is expected to reach 22% in 2024.

Lam Dinh Thang, Director of the municipal Department of Information and Communications, said that the Politburo’s Resolution 31/2022 assigned the city the task of becoming the flagship center to lead the nation into a digital economy by 2030.

The city has proactively carried out measures to promote the digital economy. It has also integrated solutions into digital economic development targets in the municipal Party Committee’s resolutions and the city’s annual socioeconomic development programme, said Thang.

Currently, Ho Chi
Minh City is developing digital infrastructure, promoting non-cash payments in many fields, especially administrative procedures, education, health care, and transportation.

However, awareness in many places, many levels, and many sectors is still insufficient. Measurement methods and tools are not consistent, and policies and resources to support small and medium-sized enterprises are lacking, Thang pointed out.

Ha Than, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Computer Association, proposed the city consider choosing priority economic sectors to focus on digital transformation, and have a roadmap for digital transformation to help the public gain more experience on digital economic and digital administration.

HCM City seeks motivation for digital economic development hinh anh 2

Staff at Binh Phuoc province Smart Monitoring and Operations Centre. (Photo: VNA)

Meanwhile, Professor-Dr. Tran Minh Tuan, Director of the Department of Digital Economy and Digital Society under the Ministry of Information and Comm
unications, advised the city to promote digital economic development in key areas such as processing, manufacturing, garment and textiles, logistics, agriculture and services.

According to the Director of the municipal Department of Information and Communications, to promote the digital economy, since the beginning of 2024, the city has implemented measures and policies to support small- and medium-sized enterprises, business households and individuals through training and consulting activities, and assisting the use of digital platforms at low prices.

The city focuses on supporting and encouraging digital technology businesses to develop further, creating motivation to promote enterprises in different economic sectors to speed up digital transformation, developing new production and business models based on digital technology platforms, and improving the investment environment and operations at the hi-tech park, added Thang./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency

Brussels: An event called ‘Spring of Love’ was organised by the General Union of Vietnamese in Brussels (UGVB) on February 11 (the second day of the first lunar month) on the occasion of the arrival of the Year of the Dragon, offering an opportunity for overseas Vietnamese in the country to get together and honour their common root.

President of the UGVB Huynh Cong My spotlighted the significance of the Lunar New Year (Tet) festival with the OVs, and affirmed the union’s role in connecting the OVs with the homeland’s culture.

Conveying Tet wishes to the Vietnamese community, Ambassador Nguyen Van Thao laid stress on the sound ties between Vietnam and Belgium, and expressed his hope for the future development of the relations with the upcoming visit by Belgian King and Queen to Vietnam in October.

The cultural centre of Woluwe Saint-Pierre district of Brussels was turned into a warm Tet space, and was a favourite check-in point of visitors to the event. It featured a calligraphy corner where Jean-Sébastien
Gill – a French national who is a fan of the art of calligraphy – wrote New Year wishes for the OVs, and a charity corner where handicrafts were sold to raise money for children in difficult circumstances in Vietnam.

Additionally, visitors also have a chance to enjoy art performances staged by Vietnamese artists in Europe./.

Source: Vietnam News Agency