The National Tourism Year 2022 themed “Quang Nam - A green tourism destination” kicked off on March 26 in Hoi An Ancient Town, the central province of Quang Nam.

A series of tourism events throughout the year are expected to lay the platform for the tourism industry to accelerate the recovery process after two years of struggling with the Covid-19 pandemic.

An art performance is on display at the opening ceremony. Photo: TTXVN

Addressing the ceremony, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized the opening ceremony of the National Tourism Year 2022 marks the resumption of Vietnam’s tourism activities and is a key event of the 2022 National Tourism Year Program.

The Prime Minister stated tourism is not only an important economic sector but also promotes development cooperation, cultural exchange, international integration, friendship building, and peace.

Chinh added Vietnam has enormous potential and advantages for tourism development with beautiful nature, rich and diverse historical and cultural traditions, friendly people, political stability, security, stable social order, and safety. Over the years, along with the general development of the country, the smokeless industry has grown tremendously and become an important economic sector.

He added the country has become a bright spot on the world tourism map, recognized by the international community with many world’s top awards.

The Prime Minister said Vietnam persistently and resolutely implements the foreign policy of diversification and multilateralization, befriending all countries, becoming a reliable partner and an active and responsible member of the international community with deep and effective international integration, striving for peace, cooperation, and development in the region and the world.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh states his speech at the event. Photo: VGP

“In particular, tourism development must be closely and effectively linked with the conservation and promotion of heritage values ​​and national cultural identity. We need to build big international tourism brands with Vietnamese identity, unique cultural identity, and friendly Vietnamese people,” the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister asked all levels of government, the business community, and each citizen to join hands and create a green environment for the sustainable development of the tourism industry with practical actions.

It is necessary to strengthen investment attraction and technological innovation and promote digital transformation in the tourism industry. This is an inevitable trend in the world to move towards the formation of a smart tourism ecosystem that connects actively tourists, service providers, and state management agencies to build a green tourism environment.

There is also a need to mobilize the participation of the local community in forming a competitive and responsible tourism service supply chain and raise their awareness so that each citizen becomes a “tourist ambassador”.

The Vietnamese government has chosen the theme “Unity and discipline, proactive adaptation, safety and efficiency, recovery and development” for 2022, Chinh said, adding that, keywords of Vietnam’s tourism in 2022 and the coming period will be peace, cooperation, development, greening, safety, friendliness, digitalization, and connection.

An art performance at the opening ceremony. Photo: TTXVN