Rung hoa da lat

The one-kilometer pedestrian zone spanning Phan Boi Chau to Dong Hai streets will open from 6 p.m. to midnight on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays as well as holidays, according to the provincial People’s Committee.

The launch of the pedestrian zone is part of authorities’ efforts to diversify tourist services and develop the local night-time economy.

From April 23 to May 2, the central province will host a tourism week with a range of activities including a street carnival, street music shows and traditional boat racing on Nhat Le River to attract tourists and improve revenues after more than a year of Covid-19 impacts.

Quang Binh, a popular tourist attraction, is home to UNESCO heritage site Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park and often referred to as the “Kingdom of Caves” as it boasts many limestone caves including Son Doong, the world’s largest.

In July 2020, the government approved a master plan for night-time economy development in the country, allowing major cities like Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang as well as other tourist destinations like Hoi An, Hue, Da Lat and Phu Quoc to pilot night-time services from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Hanoi, HCMC, Quang Ninh, Hue and Hoi An are among those now piloting night-time services.

Island tour is a strategic product of Khanh Hoa Province’s tourism industry. (Photo: SGGP)

Khanh Hoa launches many promotional programs to stimulate domestic tourism market when the number of foreign tourists decreased due to the Covid-19 outbreak. (Photo: SGGP)

By Van Ngoc – Translated by Kim Khanh

By staff writers – Translated by Thuy Doan

Vietnam is offering opportunities for investors by creating a stable, friendly business environment

According to the report, Vietnam’s attraction of foreign direct investment (FDI) from CPTPP member countries was modest in the first year of the agreement’s implementation. Data from the Ministry of Planning and Investment showed that in 2019, the number of newly licensed foreign investment projects increased more than 13 percent compared to 2018.

While the 2019 investment of almost US$9.5 billion from CPTPP countries was nearly 36 percent lower than the previous year’s, this was due to the surge of 2018 foreign capital from Japan for Sumitomo Corporation’s US$4.1 billion Smart City project in the capital Hanoi. That investment alone accounted for almost 30 percent of all FDI Vietnam attracted from CPTPP countries in the same year.

As a result, new capital registered a comparative decline in 2019, with the average value of a new FDI project from CPTPP countries decreasing 56.9 percent, from nearly US$11 million in 2018 to US$4.7 million per project in 2019. CPTPP-related institutional and market opening commitments apply to the long term and do not have an immediate impact on FDI inflows.

Although FDI from CPTPP countries decreased 36 percent, total FDI capital attracted by Vietnam in 2019 increased over seven percent.

According to the report, FDI attraction from CPTPP countries increased in 2020, reaching US$11.8 billion, up 24.4 percent from 2019. In all, Vietnam attracted US$28.5 billion in FDI capital last year, down almost 25 percent compared to 2019 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

David Gottlieb, Counselor for Economic and Development Cooperation at the Australian Embassy in Vietnam, gave a speech at a recent conference reviewing two years of CPTPP implementation

Surge in Q1 foreign investment

According to data from the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency, in the first quarter of 2021, Vietnam attracted US$10.13 billion in FDI capital, up 18.5 percent from the same period last year. Two CPTPP countries, Singapore and Japan, topped the list of foreign investors in the first quarter, with Singapore investing US$4.6 billion (accounting for 45.6 percent of the total) and Japan US$2.1 billion (20.8 percent of the total).

Economists say Vietnam is offering opportunities for investors by creating a stable, friendly business environment.

David Gottlieb, Counselor for Economic and Development Cooperation at the Australian Embassy in Vietnam, underscored the importance of utilizing digital technology in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. He recommended that Vietnam seek to take advantage of the opportunities brought about by the CPTPP to increase digitalization.

According to Gottlieb, the Covid-19 pandemic presented a range of unprecedented challenges to the principles of free trade and market openness. Fortunately, CPTPP members such as Australia and Vietnam responded well to the pandemic and were still able to fulfill their commitments to rules-based trade whilst maintaining open supply chains which provide positive and transparent information.

Nguyen Hoa

Quang Nam Province, home to UNESCO heritage sites Hoi An ancient town and My Son sanctuary, is pending government green light to become the first locality to welcome foreign tourists carrying Covid-19 vaccine passports.

Dinh Hai, former director of the Quang Nam Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said the central province is capable of meeting traffic infrastructure, health service and tourism demands implicit in welcoming vaccinated foreign tourists. “Quang Nam has Chu Lai International Airport and some large resorts in South Hoi An.”

He proposed only welcoming tourists to two cordoned off resorts in Duy Xuyen District or Nui Thanh District in the province, which neighbors Da Nang City. They along with resort staff would be strictly supervised to avoid the risk of spreading the virus to the community.

Phan Xuan Thanh, president of the Quang Nam Tourism Association, said: “This is a competition and if we do not take the initiative, we will lag behind other countries.”

“Foreign tourists will stay in a separate area, just play golf or use tourism services there and would not travel to other localities,” Thanh added.

Associate Professor Pham Trung Luong, former head of the Hanoi-based Institute for Tourism Development Research, has a more cautious perspective on the pilot project. He said Vietnam should discuss with other countries a uniform procedure for recognizing vaccine passports and Covid-19 tests.

“Currently, countries around the world are using different Covid-19 vaccines with different testing procedures, so it is necessary to ensure that these certificates are suitable to Vietnam. The nation also needs to build a system to detect fake vaccine passports, which are cropping up in some countries.”

Luong added that the most ideal condition for Vietnam to reopen its door to international tourists would be when the country gains herd immunity. “While herd immunity not yet achieved, potential Covid-19 outbreaks are more likely, even when hosting foreign tourists in cordoned off areas.”

Under the vaccine passport pilot project outlined by Quang Nam authorities, arriving foreign tourists must have a vaccine passport (documented proof of two shots of vaccination) and a certificate from medical agencies showing negative Covid-19 test results, and only stay in cordoned off resorts. They will be tested for Covid-19 from once to twice.

The project will have visitors entering Vietnam on tours organized by international travel agencies. During the first phase proposed to start in July, Quang Nam authorities are expected to welcome visitors from South Korea and countries that have contained the outbreaks.

The group of tourists will arrive on a charter flight at Chu Lai Airport and be taken straight to resorts in Duy Xuyen District or Nui Thanh District for a maximum stay of five days to play golf, visit casinos or enjoy sea tourism services.

Under the plan, they will be exempt from centralized quarantine. As per Health Ministry protocol, currently, foreign passengers entering the country must be sent to centralized quarantine facilities for 14 days.

Due to the closure of the borders as a pandemic safety measure, the number of international visitors to Vietnam was only 3.7 million in 2020, down 80 over 2019.

Vietnam stopped all international commercial flights in March 2020. International visitors entering the country since are mainly experts, high-tech workers, investors and foreigners working on national projects.