Jakarta (VNA)ও – Deputy Minister of Culture,Sports and Tourism Doan Van Viet together with other tourism senior officials in ASEANcountries attended the 26th Meeting of ASEAN Tourism Ministers (M-ATM) thatopened on February 4 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Participants in the event that is part of the ASEAN Tourism Forum( ATF) 2023 heard a reportand gave comments on the results of the 57th meeting of the ASEAN NationalTourism Organisations, considered the agenda of M-ATM 3 (ASEAN plus China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea); M-ATM-India andM-ATM-Russia; and attended consultations with international organisations. The meeting also reviewed and approved the Chairman'sStatement and 26th meeting of M-ATM Minutes. Speaking at the event, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Doan Van Viet said that2022 witnessed a rapid recovery of the regional tourism industry. Countriesreopened borders and lifted travel restrictions related to the COVID-19pandemic. As a result, in the final months of 2022, the number ofinternational visitors to the region increased rapidly, promoting the recoveryof services, and contributing to job creation and overall economic growth. During the transition time of the tourism industry, theASEAN tourism cooperation mechanism has affirmed its importance in maintainingconnectivity and close cooperation between ASEAN member countries, Viet said. He highly appreciated the active coordinating role of theASEAN Secretariat, Indonesia as ASEAN chair, and the national tourism agenciesthat have made great efforts to implement projects, plans, and targetedprogrammes, contributing to helping the tourism industry overcome manydifficulties and challenges and achieve remarkable results. Appreciating the project of the Intra-ASEAN Tourism RecoveryCampaign, Viet said that many experts and organisations hel that neighbouringmarkets will be easier to recover and can become leverage to attract customersfrom distant markets again. As one of the first countries to remove all entryrequirements related to the COVID-19 pandemic from May 2022, Vietnam hasactively promoted tourism promotion, especially towards the ASEAN market. Last year, Vietnam welcomed about 3.5 foreign visitors, including about 920,000 visitors from ASEAN, accounting for about 45% of that in the pre-pandemic level./.