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| Many tourists flocked to Moc Chau over the past 10 years. — Photo yatlat.com |
HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Son La is calling for investment in its Moc Chau National Tourism Zone as well as in sectors having development advantages in the province.
At a seminar on investment opportunities in Son La Province and the Moc Chau National Tourism Zone in Ha Noi on Tuesday, Chairman of the provincial People's Committee Cam Ngoc Minh said that the Prime Minister recently approved a master plan for the development of the tourism zone by 2020, with a vision to 2030. It is expected to become a driving force for tourism development in the locality, as well as the whole northern midland and mountainous region.
Under the plan, the 206,000ha zone in Moc Chau and Van Ho districts will have diversified and unique tourism products with high competitiveness, along with natural landscapes and ethnic cultural identities.
The zone is expected to welcome 1.2 million visitors by 2020 and 3 million by 2030, generating VND1.5 trillion (US$71.4 million) and VND6 trillion ($285.7 million) in revenue respectively.
It will target visitors from the Red River Delta and the northern midland and mountainous region, as well as those from foreign markets such as Western Europe, Northern America, Northeast Asia and Southeast Asia.
The zone will include three key tourism centres, namely the Moc Chau relaxation centre, the Moc Chau eco-tourism centre and the Moc Chau recreational centre.
Community-based tourism villages will be formed in Dong Sang, Muong Sang and Tan Lap communes in Moc Chau district, and Chieng Khoa commune in Van Ho District.
The province also plans to establish a transnational tourist route, connecting Moc Chau and Laos via the Long Sap border gate, and increase connectivity with other ASEAN member countries such as Thailand and Myanmar.
According to the local Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Moc Chau has enjoyed a continuous increase in the number of tourists, from 288,000 arrivals in 2010, to 600,000 in 2013 and about 850,000 in 2014, mainly during holidays, winter and spring, when plum and peach flowers blossom, and during the Mong ethnic New Year festival in September.
Meanwhile, the province has also invited investment for 21 key projects having high potential and great impact on the provincial socio-economy in trade, agriculture and forestry, as well as processing, production and construction.
Minh said that the province will complete policies, develop workforce and promote co-operation to create favourable conditions for efficient development of investment projects.
Tran Bac Ha, chairman of Bank for Investment and Development of Viet Nam (BIDV) which was one of the organisers of the seminar, said that the Son La Province should focus capital in sectors having potential in the provinces and have investment structures based on targets of the developing socio-economy for each period. The province should prioritise the sectors to which it is inviting investment.
BIDV, which expects to be a bridge between investors and the province, will have credit products with soft interest rates for enterprises in Son La, and for investors that have real ability to develop projects efficiently in the province, Ha added. — VNS