Representatives from private and public tourism sectors, social anddevelopment organisations, and media from the Greater Mekong Sub-region(GMS) gathered in the central city of Da Nang on June 15 for a forum todiscuss measures to promote sustainable tourism development in theregion.

The annual forum aims to introduce trends and tourismdevelopment and seek effective ways to strengthen the tourism industryin the GMS, which boasts the most rapid development speed in Asia andPacific Ocean.

During the five-day event, participantsemphasised the importance of boosting connectivity and partnership amongtravel agencies and tourism sectors in GMS nations to fully tap thepotential of the region and turn it into a unique tourist destination.

StevenSchipani, an expert from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Laos saidit is necessary to develop tourism in such a way that benefits thecommunity and ensures environmental protection.

ADB is involvedin tourism initiatives in the GMS because it sees strong tourismmanagement in the region and the sector is supporting poverty reductionefforts and pushing economic growth in GMS countries, he noted.

Statisticsrevealed that around 52 million tourists visited the GMS in 2013, up 17percent from 2012. Since 2002, the number of foreign arrivals to theregion has increased about 12 percent per year, helping the GMS accountfor 3 percent of the global tourism market share.

As part ofefforts to facilitate win-win economic cooperation among GMS countriesincluding Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, and China’sYunnan and Guangxi provinces, this year’s forum is discussing topicsrelated to cuisine tourism, discovery tourism, community-based tourism,transnational culture tourism and the use of social media for marketingand luring travellers to the region.-VNA