Quiz c program

The program is an initiative by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism and Vietnam Airlines to cope with the impacts of the Covid-19 epidemic.

The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism on February 25 called on local tourism departments, tourism associations and enterprises to actively engage in the stimulus program for international and domestic tourism, Hanoimoi reported.

Vietnam’s tourism struggles to recover from the Covid-19 epidemic. Photo: HNM

The program is an initiative by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism and Vietnam Airlines Corporation to cope with the impacts of the Covid-19 epidemic, with a view to reviving  the tourism industry and accomplishing targets set for 2020.

The stimulus program for domestic tourism with the message “Vietnam is safe” will be rolled out nationwide, from March to August 2020.

Meanwhile, the program for international tourism will run from April to December 2020 with the message “VietnamNOW”, which focuses on Southeast Asia, India, Russia and Europe. The program’s inception coincides with the Vietnam Grand Prix F1 Racing, which will be held in Hanoi from April 3 to 5.

Under the stimulus program, there will be policies on exemption and reduction of entrance fees at tourist sites and destinations, air ticket discounts for groups of travelers, among other promotions. It is expected that once they visit Vietnam, travelers will spread the message that Vietnam is a safe and attractive destination.

According to Mr. Vu The Binh, the local travel stimulation in the current context has been more diversified than the previous years but once the tourism sector is restored, the service prices will climb back.

Enterprises with the demand for bank loans will be connected with credit institutions with long-term interest rates ranging from 6.5 percent to 11.3 percent a year and short-term interest rate of 4.5 percent per year to invest in livestock and production activities, technology renovation and development of distribution systems and goods storage.

Besides, the Department of Industry and Trade also encouraged businesses to use their capital, strengthen linkage and cooperation between manufacturing enterprises and distributors to be loaned for production, ensure plentiful goods, stable prices and raise the competitiveness of subsidized products.

Hundreds of cheap tours, accommodations and vacation packages are being introduced at Hanoi Culture, Tourism and Gastronomy Festival 2021.

A domestic tourism stimulating program, introducing cheap travel products and packages was launched on April 16 by Hanoi Department of Tourism, in coordination with the municipal Center for Promotion of Investment, Trade and Tourism.

Within the framework of the launching ceremony of domestic tourism stimulating  program 2021, quite a few MoUs of cooperation between Hanoi management agencies, organizations and enterprises were signed. Photo: Kinh te & Do thi

The program, run under the framework of Hanoi Culture, Tourism and Gastronomy Festival 2021, which is taking place this weekend in Hanoi.

Under the program, hundreds of attractive tours, accommodations and vacation packages at very suitable prices are introduced by local tour operators and travel agents, aiming at encouraging Vietnamese people to travel in Hanoi and throughout the nation.

Local tour operators offer discounts from 15% -35% on tour prices, waiver of  many extra service frees and present gifts for customers. Hotels within Hanoi city offer discounts from 15% to 30% on their accommodation rates and services.

Some local airlines have launched attractive stimulus packages. Vietnam Airlines sells 200,000 flight tickets priced at VND99,000 ($4.2) those who buy right at the festival. Bamboo Airways sell 10,000 tickets at a discount of up to 80% on tickets of one-way domestic flights from localities to Hanoi. Vietravel Airlines sells 999 tickets at the price of VND8,000 ($0.5) and 300 tickets at VND0 to travel businesses.

Besides, Vietnam Railways committed to sell 10,000 train tickets at half the normal price on North-South train lines, meanwhile other transportation businesses pledged to cut fares from 15% to 30% in April and May 2021.

The launching ceremony of domestic tourism stimulating program will kick-off a series of domestic tourism stimulating in the capital this year to attract people from other localities to visit the city. Photo: Kinh te & Do thi

According to Hanoi Department of Tourism, as a part of domestic tourism stimulating campaign, the department has already coordinated with local tour operators, travel services suppliers and relevant authorities at tourist sites  in the city to build up some interesting and attractive tourism products.

Some of these typical tours are the night-tour to Hoa Lo Prison called “The Holy Night – Radiant Vietnamese Spirit”; night-tour to Thang Long Imperial Citadel – “Thang Long Imperial Citadel Decoding”; “Hanoi wandering night”; and the spiritual tour of “Four Immortals”. Vietnam Museum of Ethnology will introduce a variety  of events such as “The fragrance of Hanoi autumn”, “Family’s Fun Day”, “Explore summer with friends”, among others. Some adventurous and sporty trips to Ba Vi National Parks will also be organized during the year of 2021

According to Vice Chairman of Hanoi People’s Committee Nguyen Manh Quyen, during the year of 2021, Hanoi tourism will focus on promoting synergy to deploy and well implement specific solutions to strengthen the capital’s tourism industry in all terms of scale, scope and quality of services.

Hanoi strives to receive around 50% to 70% of the number of domestic tourists in 2019, and be well prepared to welcome international tourists once the border closure is lifted.

“The launching ceremony of domestic tourism stimulating program will kick-off a series of domestic tourism stimulating in the capital this year to attract people from other localities to visit the city. It is also an opportunity for tourism businesses in Hanoi and localities to exchange experiences, search for cooperation opportunities and, look for proper solutions to help tourism industry overcoming difficulties and develop in the “new normal” after Covid-19 pandemic,” Quyen affirmed.

Within the framework of the launching ceremony of domestic tourism stimulating  program 2021, quite a few MoUs of cooperation between Hanoi management agencies, organizations and enterprises were signed, including the one on  the cooperation between the Hanoi Department of Tourism and the Department of Cultural Diplomacy and UNESCO (Ministry of Foreign Affairs); MoU on cooperation in tourism development between five provinces and cities of Hanoi, Hai Phong, Quang Ninh, Ninh Binh and Thanh Hoa and collaboration between the Hanoi Department of Tourism and Vietravel, among others.

Vietnam’s startup ecosystem is thriving thanks to the market size of its economy.

Vietnam is the first beneficiary in Southeast Asia of a startup acceleration program to create business innovation in developing countries supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

NINJA Accelerator in Ho Chi Minh City

The project Next INnovation with JApan (NINJA) is a startup support program launched since January 2020 aiming to match up with Japanese companies in order to promote investment in the beneficiary countries.

Through the project, JICA intends to collaborate with various stakeholders to develop entrepreneurialism, identify issues experienced by entrepreneurs, make policy recommendations, strengthen corporate management capacity, promote collaboration among enterprises across industries.

With the launching of NINJA Accelerator in Ho Chi Minh City, the project aims to create social impact in Vietnam by focusing on United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs).

The program is forged by a global partnership among JICA, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, NTUitive Pte Ltd, Singapore, and Saigon Innovation Hub (SIHUB), Vietnam National University Information Technology Park (VNU ITP), and Saigon Hi-tech Park Incubation Centre (SHTPIC), Vietnam.

NINJA Accelerator in Ho Chi Minh City strives to be a driving force in Vietnam’s effort to promote and develop an entrepreneurial environment that will bring about significant economic and social impact.

According to JICA, the final goal is to create homegrown enterprises that lead to job creations and continue to impart entrepreneurship skill sets to the like-minded community, especially in the face of Covid-19.

Vietnam’s startup ecosystem

Vietnam’s fintech startups. Source: Fintechnews

Vietnam is fast becoming a tech startup hub in the ASEAN region. The country is now home to as many as 3,000 startups, making it the third largest startup ecosystem in Asia, according to Topica Founder Institute.

Meanwhile, Singapore-based Fintechnews commented that Vietnam has all the needed characteristics to become a major fintech market thanks to a growing middle class, rising Internet penetration, and a population of nearly 100 million people, most of whom are young and tech-savvy.

The majority of successful tech startups in Vietnam are limited to the three main fields of e-commerce, fintech, and online services.

Vietnam moved up 13 places to the 59th in ranking of 100 economies with the best startup ecosystems (based on three basic aspects namely quantity, quality, and business environment) in a report released in March 2020 by StartupBlink, a global comprehensive startup ecosystem map and research center.

“The ecosystem is mostly thriving due to the substantial market size of the Vietnamese economy, making the creation of successful local startups profitable even if they do not expand out of Vietnam,” said the report.

Currently, Vietnam is at the intersection of manufacturing and IT outsourcing but it is also well positioned to benefit from increased trade in the region.

More importantly, Vietnam’s leadership has committed to making Vietnam a “startup nation” in a bid to accelerate the country’s growth over the next 20 years.

Andrew P. Rowan, an American entrepreneur has lived and worked in Vietnam since 2013, wrote in the book “Startup Vietnam: Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Socialist Republic” that Vietnam has experienced significant and rapid economic growth in the last twenty years, a shift that has positioned Vietnam as a leading nation for startups in Southeast Asia.