The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cao Bang province held a conference to promote the implementation of the Cooperation Agreement on protecting and exploiting tourism resources of Ban Gioc - Duc Thien waterfall.

Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu delivered the opening speech at the Conference to promote the implementation of the Cooperation Agreement on Protection and Exploitation of Tourism Resources of Ban Gioc Waterfall (Vietnam) and Detian (China). (Photo: Quang Hoa)

The conference was co-chaired by Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu and Cao Bang Provincial Party Secretary Quan Minh Cuong.

Attending the conference were leaders of units of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs , Secretary of Cao Bang Provincial Party Committee Quan Minh Cuong, Chairman of Cao Bang Provincial People's Committee Hoang Xuan Anh and representatives of relevant ministries and branches.

In his opening speech, Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu affirmed that in the context of the positive and stable development of Vietnam-China relations, the effective implementation of the Tourism Cooperation Agreement at Ban Gioc - Duc Thien Waterfall is of great significance, opening up a new direction for border cooperation, promoting socio-economic development, ensuring national defense and security and improving the lives of people in border areas.

The Deputy Minister emphasized that over the past time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has proactively coordinated with ministries, branches and localities to implement many important initiatives in the border area, notably putting the Ban Gioc - Duc Thien Waterfall Joint Landscape Area into official operation from October 15, 2024.

This is the first cross-border tourism cooperation model between Vietnam and China, attracting thousands of tourists, demonstrating the great potential for tourism development in the region.

At the Conference, delegates proposed many solutions to remove obstacles, such as adjusting planning to comply with the Agreement, increasing infrastructure investment, improving service quality, and building a regular coordination mechanism between the two sides.

However, the Deputy Minister also frankly pointed out the shortcomings, such as the lack of synchronization in Vietnam's infrastructure, monotonous tourism products, and ineffective coordination between the two sides.

To overcome the difficulties, Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Vu suggested strengthening the coordination mechanism between the two countries' functional agencies; prioritizing the mobilization of investment resources to upgrade infrastructure; developing unique tourism products, associated with cultural identity and in line with the foreign policy orientation of the Party and State.

On the local side, Cao Bang Provincial Party Secretary Quan Minh Cuong said that the province has actively coordinated with ministries, branches and the Chinese side to implement many contents of the Agreement, such as establishing a provincial coordination committee, conducting field surveys, bilateral talks, and developing plans to exploit and manage tourists at the Scenic Area.

Cao Bang Provincial Party Secretary Quan Minh Cuong spoke at the Conference to promote the implementation of the Cooperation Agreement on Protection and Exploitation of Tourism Resources of Ban Gioc Waterfall (Vietnam) - Detian (China).

Cao Bang Provincial Party Secretary Quan Minh Cuong emphasized that the Joint Tourism Cooperation Agreement is the first model in the field of cross-border tourism between the two countries, which is of great significance in protecting sovereignty, national security and sustainable development of border areas. However, the implementation process still faces many difficulties, such as unsynchronized planning, different immigration procedures, weak technical infrastructure, lack of investment resources, etc.

Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee Quan Minh Cuong proposed that the central ministries and branches soon approve the adjustment of the tourism planning in accordance with the Agreement, allocate investment capital, and issue special mechanisms to attract strategic projects. The province is also considering proposals from Guangxi (China), including 2 cross-border cooperation projects and 4 joint investment projects in the Ban Gioc Waterfall Scenic Area (Vietnam) - Detian (China).

At the Conference, delegates agreed to propose many solutions to remove obstacles, such as adjusting planning to comply with the Agreement, increasing infrastructure investment, improving service quality, building a regular coordination mechanism between the two sides, and carefully studying cooperation proposals from Guangxi (China).

Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Vu suggested strengthening the coordination mechanism between the two countries' functional agencies; prioritizing the mobilization of investment resources to upgrade infrastructure; developing unique tourism products, associated with cultural identity and in line with the foreign policy orientation of the Party and State.

Concluding the conference, Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Vu emphasized that the Ban Gioc - Duc Thien Waterfall Joint Tourist Landscape Area is a model of cooperation between the two countries, which needs to be operated effectively and long-term.

The Deputy Minister requested ministries, branches and localities to strengthen close coordination, promote the spirit of initiative and creativity, synchronously implement the contents of the Agreement, build the landscape area into a symbol of tourism cooperation, promote peace, friendship and sustainable development of the Vietnam - China border area.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/bo-ngoai-giao-va-tinh-cao-bang-to-chuc-hoi-nghi-day-manh-trien-khai-hiep-dinh-hop-tac-bao-ve-va-khai-thiac-tai-nguyen-du-lich-thac-ban-gioc-duc-thien-310496.html