Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has approved aproject to develop the night-time economy in Vietnam to allow some activitiesto run overnight until 6am of the next day in some major tourism cities andzones.

The project aims to exploit the potential of the night-time economy in Vietnamto promote overall economic growth, improving incomes for residents whilelimiting risks and negative impacts on political security, social order andsafety.

Under the project, night-time activities would have expanded opening hours insome key tourism areas, including Hanoi, Quang Ninh, Hai Phong, HCM City, DaNang, Hoi An, Thua Thien-Hue, Can Tho, Da Lat and Phu Quoc.

After the pilot implementation, evaluation of the economic efficiency andmanagement efficiency would be carried out to develop an operating model forthe night-time economy and bring it to other localities.

Specific night-time activities allowed under the plan were not disclosed.

Under the project, policies to encourage enterprises and business households toparticipate in the night-time economy would be developed, including improvingtheir capacity to access official financial sources, especially banking credit.

Tourism promotion for night-time activities would be enhanced together withbuilding night-time tourism products based on the cultural factors of eachlocality.

The PM also asked provincial and municipal People’s Committees to studynight-time economic models appropriate for their areas.

Both the negative and positive impacts of night-time activities must becarefully studied, the PM asked.

The PM also asked to develop plans for areas to implement night-time activitiesin the future.

According to Tran Dinh Thien, former Director of the Central Institute forEconomic Management, it was necessary to carefully study the model for thenight-time economy in Vietnam.

Security would be a major factor when developing a night-time economy, expertssaid.

In an article in Cong Thuong (Industry and Trade) magazine on February 25, Luu ThanhTam from the HCM City University said that although some tourism products whichhappened from 6pm to 3am of the next day were very profitable, these productswere not well-developed in Vietnam.

The night-time economy was not just night markets, discos, bars, karaoke jointsor pedestrian streets but should include shopping, dining and a range of otherservices such as transportation, trade and cross-border financial transactions,he said.

According to Tam, to develop the night-time economy, it was necessary to havespecific planning. In the early stage, only large investors and high-qualityservices should be allowed until efficient management measures were raised.

Under current regulations, public activities are not allowed after midnight.Only clubs inside tourist accommodation establishments rated at least threestars or higher are permitted to open after midnight but not later than 2:00 amthe following day./.