ASEAN seeks solutions to ease COVID-19 impacts on tourism (Photo: https://asean.org/)Bangkok (VNA) – ASEAN member nations have agreed to commit toa prevention plan, with each country sharing information through the Tourism CrisisCommunications Team, as well as seeking cooperation from international organizationsto together to revive travel confidence following the pandemic.
According to Thai Ministerof Tourism and Sports Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, at a Special Meeting of ASEANTourism Ministers on COVID-19 via video conference April 29, tourism ministersof the member nations approved in principle the Joint Statement of ASEAN TourismMinisters on Strengthening Cooperation to Revitalise Tourism.
Local media quoted Phiphat as saying that participants were skipping any discussion of visa policy allowing ASEANcitizens to travel freely between borders.
“The visa facilitation policy will be reconsidered once ASEANcan contain the virus spread and travel restrictions in each country are lifted,allowing tourism activities to resume”, he said.
If avaccine is not developed this year, all ASEAN members agreed to implementshared standards that highlight social distancing practices as well as safetyand hygiene in tourism services.
Each country in this region shares a hopeful viewthat domestic tourism will restart in July, said Phiphat. The driver ofinternational markets will be Southeast Asian tourists, before expanding toAsia overall, he said.
He added that if the situation in Asia, including China, Japan and the Republic of Korea,can improve by the last quarter, intra-Asia tourism will help mitigate theimpacts of the pandemic in the region.
According to the official, countries where economic growth reliesheavily on tourism such as Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore are suffering the worst losses, followed by Indonesia and thePhilippines. Meanwhile, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia are facing lessimpacts on their tourism industries./.
VNA
