Sir, it is known that after the “Hà Nội Declaration” in 2004, in March 2008, the General Administration of Vietnam Tourism proposed an initiative of organizing Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) in Vietnam. According to your assessment, what is the role of the tourism sector in promoting the Asian – European cooperation relationship before and in the current background?

Tourism is one of the important economic sectors. It contributes up to 10% to the world’s GDP. In 2007, 903 million people traveled internationally, which increased 6.6% compared to that of 2006, in which there are 19 million and 17 million in Europe and Asia – Pacific, respectively. Such a more and more vibrant exchange proves the enhancement of tourist cooperation – besides other fields – plays a very important in promoting the economic, politic and social relationship between the two organizations.

Hà Nội Declaration 2004 was an important mark in the Asian – European cooperation process. For the first time after 8 years since the cooperation mechanism formed, tourism has been added as one of the preferential cooperative fields besides politic, economic and cultural cooperative mainstays in ASEM. Responding to Hà Nội Declaration, in May 2007, at the ASEM Foreign Ministers Meeting, Vietnam was willing to host and received great favours for organizing the first ASEM Tourism Forum in the scope of Asian – European cooperation.

It can be affirmed that the Forum is a specific result that fortifies the achievements of ASEM cooperation progress lasting the past 12 years. With topics and content to be discussed in this Forum, the tourism sector purely wishes to contribute more to fulfilling the millennium goal of hunger eradication and poverty alleviation that the United Nations is launching. At the same time, by mean of this Forum, tourism affirms to bridge and fortify the solidarity of different nationalities of the two continents, to promote exchanges, to preserve heritages and to uphold cultural values of nationalities.

Sir, what is your expectation for Vietnam tourism by mean of this Forum?

ASEM Tourism Forum, which is first organized in Vietnam, has attracted the participation of 21 membership nations of ASEM – especially the presence of the Tourism Ministers of 4 countries Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Laos and Cambodia – as well as the participation of 7 international organizations paying their attention to tourist development: ASEF, UNWTO, ST-EP, UNESCO, GTZ, EU, EuroCharm. Moreover, the Forum also receives the care and support of representative agencies of foreign affairs of Asian – European countries in Vietnam with the presence of 7 Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary and many economic, commercial counselors of Asian – European countries in HCMC. In addition to delegates that represent governmental tourist administration agencies, there are tourist enterprises to take part in the Forum. The ASEM Tourism Forum, which is organized in Vietnam this time, will be a good occasion to promote introducing and popularizing the images of Vietnamese country, people and tourism. This contributes to affirming the role and raising the position of Vietnam in the region and internationally. The respectful and considerate reception of the host country, the locality and enterprises in HCMC will contribute to popularizing and introducing widely Vietnamese country, people and tourism to more international friends and partners. Exceptionally, the Forum will be organized 1 day prior to the ITE 2008 Fair – a nationwide-scaled fair (taking place from 12 to 14 September 2008). This will be a good opportunity for Vietnam’s tourist enterprises to contact, find out about and establish business cooperative relationship with partners coming from important source markets in ASEM such as ASEAN, China, Korea, Japan, England, France, Germany and so on.

Sir, after this forum, what action programs will our Vietnam’s tourism sector in particular and the members of ASEM in general plan to concretize the results of the Meeting as well as to fortify the tourist partnership between Asian – European members?

After this Forum, with approved discussion goals, we – the tourism sectors of ASEM’s membership nations – will continue cooperation with each other more closely to build action programs. Specifically, improving the quality of tourist services by means of cooperative projects of training and human resource developing; coordinating to promote advertising and organizing tourist or cultural events in the two continents, organizing groups of press, television; boosting up promoting investment opportunities for tourism; appealing for tourist technical support and so on. These help us quickly achieve the goals approved by the Forum, that is, tourist development cooperation must be together with hunger eradication and poverty alleviation, preserving and upholding the values of traditional cultural heritages for the sustained tourist development of the two continents.

Thank you very much, Sir!

Tăng Bá Sên

Translation: Lê Doanh