SIHANOUKVILLE, 28 April 2023: Cambodia’s Tourism Minister Thong Khon welcomed delegates attending the Mekong Tourism Forum in the southern port city from 25 to 27 April under the theme “Rethinking for Resilience and Digitalisation”.
He opened the event attended by around 250 travel experts from 19 countries, including delegates from the six member countries of the Greater Mekong Subregion (Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Vietnam and Thailand). He described the region’s post-Covid-19 tourism recovery as robust, noting that Cambodia welcomed 1.3 million tourists in Q1 2023.
At the opening session on 27 April, he told the audience that new tourism facilities had been completed to improve the travel experience for tourists, and ongoing airport expansion will give the country three new international airports by 2025. Siem Reap’s new airport is due to open later this year.
In her opening remarks at the event, the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office executive director Suvimol Dee Thanasarakij said the region’s tourism industry inspires hope for strong visitor growth in GMS countries and key tourism markets due to the lifting of travel restrictions. She encouraged the industry to “reset and embrace a more sustainable and digitally advanced future.”
Pacific Asia Travel Association chairman Peter Semone’s keynote presentation focused on the pathway for building better and stronger tourism. He told delegates “rethinking tourism for resilience and sustainability” in the GMS should focus on managing and measuring tourism as an integrated ecosystem. He called for “optimizing efficiencies along the tourism value chain; treating tourism workers better; renewing the approach to entrepreneurship and innovation; facilitating the growth and prosperity of micro, small and medium enterprises while empowering communities in tourism.”
MTF 2023 was preceded by the 51st Meeting of the Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Working Group and the MTCO Board Meeting on 25 April. At the forum’s close, it was announced the MTF 2024 will be held in Lijiang, China, next May.
