Greater cooperation needed for central region tourism

Tourism remains an advantage of the central region in luring investors, but the regional localities need to increase mutual cooperation for better tourism promotion and investment attraction, said a local economist.
With many beautiful beaches along a 1,430-km coastline, the central localities have formed many coastal urban areas like Chan May-Lang Co, Danang, Hoi An, Van Tuong, Quy Nho, Tuy Hoa, Nha Trang, Phan Rang-Thap Cham and Mui Ne. These coastal urban areas lay a foundation for establishing and boosting cooperation in tourism development with other regions, said Tran Dinh Thien, head of Vietnam Economics Institute.
He was speaking at a workshop named “Tourism Development for the Central Coastal Region of Vietnam” held in Danang City last Friday.
In addition to sea tourism, the central region also holds high potential for tourism development in the Truong Son Mountain Range in the Central Highlands.
Although Vietnam’s central coastal region holds great appeal to the world, each regional locality must find its distinctions in order to woo investors, said Thien.
“The central region has striking cultural and ethnic characteristics, providing its tourism resources with distinctive features… However, it is essential to make such distinctions attractive to the world and this must be done in a systematical way in order to create a high-grade status for Vietnam’s sea tourism,” he stressed.
He remarked the cooperation among the central localities was not close enough. They have just joined hands in organizing events, but have yet to jointly develop tourism products, explore markets and promote tourism, he said.
Gerhard Merkel from Merkel & von Schweinitz GmbH Business Partner said Vietnam should adopt the global business philosophy in tourism development, focusing on nature and culture conservation instead of rapid tourism development.
“Don’t repeat the mistake of Thailand. Phuket was a peaceful beach but it is now too noisy and crowed, no longer suitable for a vacation. Bali is another example,” he said.
Sharing this view, Kai Schroter, general director of EuroCham Tourism and Hospitality Sector Committee, said Vietnam had attracted a large number of tourists and the recent data suggested no problem for Vietnam’s tourism.
However, confidence among European investors in Vietnam is declining.
“Investors needs an attractive and dynamic business environment, a fair playground, transparent administrative procedures, highly reliable and practical documents, commitments and fulfillment of such commitments,” said Schroter.
Many investors warned that Vietnam is not their only option. Therefore, Vietnam needs to make certain reforms and take prompt actions to lure and retain investors.