Developing community-based tourism is expected to help local residentsimprove their living standards and promote their cultural values, asenior tourism official said at a ceremony in Hanoi on September 26 onthe occasion of World Tourism Day.

“Tourism andCommunity Development” is the theme of this year’s event, which isobserved annually on September 27. This new trend demonstrates thatVietnam ’s tourism sector is in line with the sustainable developmentgoals of the United Nations.

Director of the VietnamNational Administration of Tourism Nguyen Van Tuan saidVietnam valued community efforts in driving the tourism industry.Local residents in major cities such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh and Huehave become actively involved in the field, he added.

In the near future, the tourism sector will help locals diversify their tourism services and draw in more visitors.

Mary McKeon, Team Leader of the EU-funded Environmentally and SociallyResponsible Tourism Capacity Development (ESRT) programme, said Vietnamwas rich in culture thanks to its 54 different ethnic groups.

With this advantage, the country would be able to take the lead in community-based tourism.

World Tourism Day is an occasion for Vietnam to show off itspotential in developing community-based tourism in a sustainable manner,she added.

Vietnam welcomed close to 5.5million international tourists during the first nine months of thisyear, an increase of 9.9 percent compared to the same period last year,according to the administration.

In 2013, Vietnamwelcomed over 35 million domestic and 7.57 million internationaltourists, up by 7.7 percent and 10.6 percent respectively year-on-year.The tourism sector generated 200 trillion in revenue, an annual rise of25 percent.-VNA