Mekong Sub-region countries bolster tourism cooperation

Six countries in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) have coordinated with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to build a strategy on sustainable development of tourism for the 2006-2015 period.

The strategy includes 29 projects that focus on poverty reduction and sustainable environmental development in order to turn the region into a destination for culture, nature and tourism.

The GMS, comprised of Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar and China, will focus its investment in transport projects such as the East-West Economic Corridor (EWEC), a bus route along the EWEC and a road through many sites of scenic interest in Hanoi, Vinh, Cau Treo of Vietnam, and Pakse and Vientiane of Laos.

Under the strategy, the Japanes-built bridge linking Champassak, Laos, with Mukahan, Thailand, will be completed by the end of this year. The bridge will help tourists shorten their travel time from Champassak to Siem Reap, Cambodia, and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam).

Many tourism firms in the region consider "A journey through three countries" with breakfast in Thailand, lunch in Laos and bathing at dusk on Danang beach in Vietnam, a potentially popular tour.

Thai mass media estimate that the GMS region will receive 52 million tourists by 2015, bringing 52 billion USD in revenue.

(Source: VNA)