Boosting the tourism sector as a key driver of growth.

08:35, 30/11/2023

BHG - With the advantage of being a locality rich in tourism development potential, our province has identified tourism development as a "key" economic sector, contributing to creating livelihoods for people to rise out of poverty and become rich in their homeland in the far north.

To realize the breakthrough of the Resolution of the 17th Provincial Party Congress on tourism development, all levels, sectors, and localities in the province are determined to promote tourism with many effective solutions to form three tourism spaces, each with many distinctive and attractive products, including: the Western tourism space with the main tourism product being the national scenic terraced rice fields; the central space with the characteristic product being spiritual tourism; and the Northern space with the UNESCO Global Geopark Dong Van Karst Plateau. From these main products, each space has many supplementary products such as: ethnic cultural products, ecological resort products, entertainment products; agricultural tourism products... forming more than 90 active tourism destinations creating a unique and attractive chain throughout all four seasons of the year.

Through promotional activities, agricultural products have attracted a large number of tourists to shop.

Through promotional activities, agricultural products have attracted a large number of tourists to come and shop.

According to Nguyen Hong Hai, Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism: Currently, the tourism infrastructure system is constantly developing. The province has 54 enterprises and cooperatives with industry codes and functions in travel services; nearly 900 tourism accommodation establishments, including 108 hotels with nearly 8,000 rooms and over 15,500 beds; and nearly 3,200 food and beverage service businesses. Human resources are being strengthened in both quantity and quality. The number of workers in the tourism industry is nearly 12,000, of which about 6,000 are directly employed. Over 1,700 workers have received training under the human resource development plan. Tourism promotion and advertising are being emphasized, innovated, and targeted at both international and domestic markets. Furthermore, regional cooperation and linkages are constantly expanding, creating a chain of linked products bearing the unique characteristics of each region.

With its impressive land and people, Ha Giang, along with effective promotional and marketing solutions, welcomed over 2.2 million tourists in 2022, including over 71,000 international visitors. Tourism service revenue was estimated at over 4.5 trillion VND. In the first nine months of 2023, the province welcomed over 2.1 million tourists, with tourism service revenue reaching over 5 trillion VND. The majority of visitors to the province come from the southern part of Vietnam and over 160 countries and territories. In recent years, the province has consistently been voted as an attractive, unique, pristine, majestic, and friendly tourist destination. The New York Times (USA) ranked Ha Giang 25th out of 52 most attractive destinations in the world. The Canadian newspaper "The Travel" selected Ha Giang as one of the 10 most beautiful destinations in Vietnam. Recently, Ha Giang was awarded the "Leading Emerging Tourist Destination in Asia" award for 2023 by the World Travel Awards (WTA).

Typical products of the province are sold in Ha Giang city to serve tourists.

The period from now until the end of the year is considered a golden time to accelerate tourism development. Our province is determined to make this "key" economic sector a crucial pillar contributing to the province's socio-economic development towards green and sustainable growth. We will focus on raising awareness and innovating thinking about tourism development; effectively implementing the issued tourism development plans, projects, and programs. We will restructure the tourism industry towards professionalism, modernity, quality, and sustainability; with a particular emphasis on implementing the national tourism development plan for the Dong Van Karst Plateau. We will develop diverse and highly competitive tourism products, focusing on five types: community tourism, cultural tourism, eco-tourism and resort tourism, sports and adventure tourism, and trade and border tourism. We will also develop traditional craft villages; characteristic products, OCOP products, and souvenirs to meet the shopping needs of tourists.

Invest in the restoration of historical and cultural relics and typical scenic spots; revive festivals and forms of cultural and artistic activities; selectively develop some typical local festivals into regional festivals to attract tourists. Build and improve institutions and policy mechanisms to promote tourism development. Create maximum convenience and simplify procedures, reducing the cost of issuing permits for international tourists to the locality. Create a favorable environment for businesses and communities to participate in tourism activities. Effectively implement policies supporting tourism development. Strengthen investment attraction and develop tourism with a focus on key areas; prioritize the allocation of state budget funds for investment in tourism infrastructure development. Accelerate the construction of transportation infrastructure projects, improving connectivity to tourist areas and destinations.

Innovate and improve the quality of content and activities promoting investment and showcasing the province's tourism potential. Enhance the quality of human resources to meet the requirements of tourism and service development. Improve the capacity of state management and business administration in the tourism sector; improve the quality of staff in terms of professional skills, foreign languages, and professional ethics to meet the requirements of competition and integration. Remove difficulties and obstacles for businesses operating tourism services. Strengthen control over compliance with state regulations in tourism business activities; effectively address issues related to the natural environment and society, creating conditions for sustainable tourism development.

Text and photos: KIM TIEN

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