Improving the quality of local tourism human resources

Identifying ethnic minorities as an important force in sustainable tourism development, Lao Cai has been promoting training and improving the quality of local human resources, contributing to preserving identity and attracting tourists.

Training courses to improve knowledge and skills for local tour guides.

Ms. Thao Thi Khu, a tour guide in Giang Ta Chai village, Ta Van commune, Sa Pa town, has been in the profession for 10 years. Initially, Ms. Khu guided tours based on instinct. In recent years, she has participated in professional training courses organized by the locality and the tourism industry, gradually improving her communication skills, thereby introducing local culture to tourists in a systematic and professional manner.

Ms. Khu said: After attending the training courses, I am more confident in communicating with tourists, thanks to that, the number of customers contacting to book tours is more and more consistent than before.

Ms. Thao Thi Chu, a room attendant at Viettrekking Sa Pa Hotel, although only finishing secondary school, has found a job with a stable income thanks to previous training in hotel skills. Currently, Viettrekking Sa Pa Hotel has 60 employees, of which about 70% are ethnic minorities.

The staff at Viettrekking Sa Pa hotel are mostly ethnic minorities.

Mr. Phan Nguyen Anh Tuan, the hotel's CEO, shared: We prioritize using local workers because they understand the local culture - a factor that many tourists appreciate and look for. Hotel staff regularly attend training courses directly taught by domestic and foreign experts, thereby improving their customer service and care skills.

Lao Cai has about 29,200 workers working in the tourism sector, of which more than 14,000 are direct workers.

These figures show that tourism is increasingly becoming an important and potential economic sector, contributing positively to the local sustainable development goals. To improve the skills of this workforce, each year, the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism organizes many training courses from the state budget and national target programs. In 2024 alone, the whole province had more than 500 people participating in 9 training courses, training in reception skills, skills in using management software, environmental protection, and application of 4.0 technology.

Every year, Lao Cai opens training classes and test classes for tour guide skills.

The province has 466 tour guides, of which 112 are on-site tour guides, most of whom work at Sa Pa National Tourist Area. Since the beginning of the year, the province has organized 5 professional training courses, with over 200 students participating.

Mr. Tran Son Binh, Deputy Director of the Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said: The tour guides at the site, especially the ethnic minorities, are the “tourism ambassadors” who bring the national cultural identity to domestic and foreign tourists. The province always prioritizes resources to improve the quality of local tourism human resources, aiming at the image of local people as friendly, knowledgeable and professional hosts.

Tour guides at the site, especially ethnic minorities, are the "tourism ambassadors" who bring national cultural identity to domestic and foreign tourists.

“With a vision to 2050, Lao Cai aims to become the leading “green” and “smart” nature and adventure sports tourism destination in Vietnam and the region, associated with the cultural identity of ethnic minorities in the mountainous region - a place that brings visitors different and emotional experiences, therefore, tourism human resources are an important force contributing to helping Lao Cai tourism achieve the above goals” - Mr. Binh added.

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/nang-cao-chat-luong-nguon-nhan-luc-du-lich-ban-dia-post402452.html