Vietnam india tourism cooperation an assessment of status and potential

Situation of Tourism Activities Between the Two Countries Overview of Vietnam and India tourism The World Travel & Tourism Council WTTC Report 2018 explains that the role and position o

in, and are included in the agenda of discussions to find solutions to develop tourism industry in Vietnam and India However, the situation of tourism activities between Vietnam and India is still very limited, much below their potential The number of tourists between the two countries is much smaller than that of in Southeast Asia counterparts such as Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia There are many obstacles and weaknesses in tourism activities from the both sides Communication and promotion activities for tourism between the two countries are inadequate Besides, the quality of tourism services and transport infrastructure is not good enough to adapt However, there is a bright spot that the growth rate of Vietnam-India tourism continues to be maintained at a relatively high level in recent years The potential of tourism cooperation between the two countries is enormous due to the effective prospect

of economic cooperation in particular and bilateral relations in general In order to promote tourism activities, both countries need solutions to enhance information and promotion for tourism products in particular and social environment of the two countries in general, as well as improve the quality of tourism services

Keywords: Vietnam, India, tourism, Tourism cooperation, FTS system

Introduction

According to World Tourism Organization, “tourism comprises the activities of persons traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes” (UNWTO).Tourism plays a big role in the development of a country at both macro and micro levels; has a great influence

on other fields and activities of a country, from economic and trade development, helps promote culture - society, or creating a country’s image and nation branding

As for Vietnam and India, tourism acting as a natural and positive factor will strongly promote deeply economic and trade cooperation Although Vietnam has been promoting the attraction of tourists from India, in fact, the number of Indian tourists coming to Vietnam and Vietnamese visitors to India is very small compared

to other markets in the Asian region Considering the potential, analysis in the following section shows that tourism activities between the two countries are still much below their potential This paper will focus on answering 3 questions: What

is the status of tourism activities between Vietnam and India? How is tourism potential between the two countries? What are advantages and blocks in tourism development between Vietnam and India?

By the method of analyzing documents from oficial statistical agencies of India and Vietnam, and consulting experts, the paper will look at the overall perspective

of tourism cooperation between both sides putting in bilateral relations between the two countries.The tourism potential assessment is based on the analytical framework

of the Functioning Tourism System (FTS) proposed by A.Gunn (1988) and edited

by Shelby R Herrin (2015)

Situation of Tourism Activities Between the Two Countries

Overview of Vietnam and India tourism

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) Report (2018) explains that the role and position of tourism for each country is quite similar Important indicators, such as total contribution of tourism and travel to the GDP of each country in 2017 was 9.4%; direct employment contributions of Vietnam and India were 4.7% and 5% respectively, total direct and indirect employment contributions were 7.6% and 8.0% respectively Besides, predictive indicators by 2028, the total contributions to

Vietnam-India Tourism Cooperation: An Assessment of Status and Potential 335

GDP of Vietnam and India respectively would be 9.8% and 9.9%; its contribution

to total direct employment is expected 4.9% and 5.3%, and total direct and indirect employment is expected to reach 8.0% and 8.4%; visitor exports is expected to reach 4.7% and 5.1%

Specifically:

The direct contribution to GDP:In Vietnam, tourism and travel contributed 12,965.5 million USD, equivalent to 5.9% of GDP in 2017 and is expected to increase by about 6.0% per annum each year (p.a) from 2018-2028, will reach about USD 24,59.6 million accounting for 6.2% of GDP by 2028 If including direct and indirect contributions, this figure is USD 20,605.6 million accounting for 9.4% of GDP in

2017, and is expected to rise by about 6.1% p.a in the period 2018-2028 and will reach 39,643.1 million by 2028, accounting for 9.8% of GDP

Meanwhile, in India:The contribution of tourism and travel directly to the national GDP was 91.3 billion USD, equivalent to 3.7% of India’s GDP in 2017 and is expected to rise by 7.1% p.a and rise to 194.7 billion USD, accounting for 3.9% of GDP in 2028 If including both direct and indirect contributions, this figure was

234 billion USD, accounting for 9.4% of GDP in 2017, and is expected to rise by 6.9% p.a from 2018 to 2028 and will reach 492.2 billion USD by 2028, accounting for 9.9% of the national GDP

Employment contribution: In Vietnam,in 2017,tourism and travel created 2,467,500 jobs directly, equivalent to 4.6% of total employment.This number is forecasted to rise

by 1.5% per annum over the period 2018-2028, reaching 2,917,000 jobs, equivalent

to 4.9% of total employment by 2028 Including direct and indirect jobs, there were 4,061,000, accounts for 7.6% of total employment, forecasted to rise by about 1.5% each year, to reach 4,790,000 jobs, accounting for 8% of total employment by 2028

In India: in 2017,tourism and travel contributed directly to 26,148,000 jobs,equivalent

to 5.0% of total employment, this figure is expected to increase by 2.1% per year in the period 2018-2028, and to reach 33,195,000 jobs equal 5.3% of total employment

by 2028 Including direct and indirect jobs, there were 41,622,500 jobs accounting for 8.0% of the total employment of the country This is expected to rise about 2% each year, reaching 52,279,000 jobs, accounting for 8.4% of the total employment by 2028

Visitor exports: In Vietnam, tourism and travel achieved 8,837.4 million USD, accounting for 4.0% of the total export value in 2017 This is expected to increase

by 6.4% annually from 2018-2028 and will reach 17,517.4 million USD by 2028 (accounting for 4.7% of total export value) In India, this figure was 27.3 billion USD, accounting for 5.8% of total export value in 2017,it is expected to increase by 5.5% per annum from 2018-2028 and reach 50.9 billion USD by 2028 (accounting for 5.1% of total export value)

Tourism investment: In Vietnam, in 2017, the Tourism and Travel sector attracted an investment of US $ 5,138.9 million, accounting for 8.5% of the nation’s total investment This is expected to increase by 5% per annum over the next ten years.This is expected

to achive US $8,965.3 million, accounting for 7.7% of the total national investment by

2028 In India, in 2017, the figure of investment in Tourism and Travel industry was

US $ 41.6 billion, equivalent to 6.3% of the nation’s total investment, It is forecasted

to increase by 6.7% per annum over the next ten years and is estimated at US $85.2 billion, accounting for 6.1% of total national investment by 2028

Current situation of tourism activities between the two countries

With the very significant figures of the tourism industry above, Vietnam and India have obviously made progress and developments In particular, the Vietnam and India tourism cooperation has also achieved good results in the period from 2010

to 2016, the number of Indian tourists traveling to Vietnam increased by 3.5 times (equivalent to 344%) from 16,000 arrivals in 2010 to more than 60,000 arrivals in

2015 and 82,000 arrivals in 2016 The trip length of Indian tourists in Vietnam is about 8 days and expenditure is estimated about 914 USD/trip Which are higher than many other Asian travelers? Vietnam’s tourism sector is aiming to welcome about 100,000 Indian tourists in the near future (Vietnam National Administration

of Tourism of 2017, VISTA 2018,Vnexpress 2018) In the same period, the number

of Vietnamese tourists to India increased 2.22 times, from 7,548 arrivals in 2010 to 16,728 arrivals in 2016.The average growth rate is about 10.5% from 2014 to 2016 (Ministry of Tourism - India, 2017)

A comparison of the purpose of travel, the data showed differences In the total of 16,728 Vietnamese visitors to India in 2016, there were 19.36% of travelers for the professional and business activities, 71.41% were for leisure holiday and recreation, 0.02% were for treatment, 4.27% were for the Indian diaspora Other reasons account for 4.94% (Ministry of Tourism - India, 2017) Meanwhile, the number of Indian tourists coming to Vietnam for entertainment purposes accounts for a modest proportion The General Statistics Ofice of Vietnam stated that the number of Indian tourists coming to Vietnam for work purposes is estimated at 57%, following by leisure and entertainment with 33% and other purposes accounting for less than 10% (GSO, 2018) In conclusion, the Indians to Vietnam are mostly for work, while the Vietnamese travellers to India with the main purpose are leisure holiday and recreation

Indian tourists traveling to Vietnam tend to increase each year and vice versa The foundations of long-standing cultural and Buddhist interactions between the two countries, and bilateral cooperation between the two sides growing strongly in all areas reinforce this growing trend In Vietnam Tourism Development Strategy

to 2020 and vision to 2030, issued in 2011, Vietnam has identified India as one of Vietnam’s key tourist markets (Decision 2473/QD -TTg of the Prime Minister

of Vietnam on December 30, 2011) Vietnam and India signed the Government-

Vietnam-India Tourism Cooperation: An Assessment of Status and Potential 339

level Tourism Cooperation Agreement on January 8, 2001 The implementation of the Agreement has been carried out in the last 5 years from 2013 with the close cooperation and interest of the Vietnamese Embassy to India and the Indian Embassy

to Vietnam The agenda of tourism cooperation has been prioritized for discussion during the Indian President’s visit to Vietnam in September 2014 and the Vietnam Prime Minister’s visit to India in October 2014

The two governments have promoted policies to fully exploit the tourism potential of Vietnam - India In 2017, in Bhubaneswar, the Vietnamese Embassy

to India and the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism joined the Vietnam Visa Service Department, deployed by VFS Global Group Thus, Indian citizens can easily apply for a visa to Vietnam quickly in their local area, without directly visiting Vietnamese representative ofices in New Delhi or Mumbai

However, it is easy to see that the achieved results are not fully commensurate with the tourism potential between the two countries.The number of Indians traveling abroad is only ranked behind China, and has risen very fast from 4.42 million arrivals

in 2000 to 21.87 million arrivals in 2016, a figure that is not small compared to only 82,000 Indian arrivals come to Vietnam The latest figures indicates that the number of Indian tourists coming to Vietnam accounting for only about 1.7% of the total Indian visitors to ASEAN countries Meanwhile, Vietnamese tourists to India accounting for only 2.24% of total tourists from Southeast Asia and accounting for 0.19% of the total international visitors to India (Ministry of Tourism - India, 2017) Table 2: Data of International and Indian visitors to other countries and Vietnam

Year to international India visitors

Vietnam-India Tourism Cooperation: An Assessment of Status and Potential 341

Figure 1:The Functioning Tourism System

Source: C.A.Gunn (1988); Herrin, Shelby R.,“Application of Heritage Tourism Development Frameworks to Jenkins County, Georgia” (2015) University Honors Program Theses 137 https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/honors-theses/137

Potentials of tourism between Vietnam and India

i Demand:

Both Vietnam and India are developing dynamically with economic growth rate

in recent years at about 7% for India and over 6% for Vietnam which is among the highest in Asia.The middle class is growing rapidly, leading to a strong increase in travel demand In Vietnam, domestic tourists in 2017 increased by 18.1% compared to 2016 The number of Vietnamese people travelling abroad also increased rapidly (Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, 2017) According to the data of the Vietnam Tourism Association, in 2016, there were about 6.5 million Vietnamese people traveled

abroad, spending $8 billion, double than the $3.5 billion figure in 2012 and in 2017, the number of foreign tourists was more than 7 million (Baomoi, 2018; Vnexpress, 2018)

According to the Ministry of Tourism (Indian) (2017), the Indians going abroad increased from 1.9 million in 1991 to 4.41 million in 2000 and 21.87 million in 2016 Asia was an attractive tourist market for Indian tourists, accounting for 47% of the total Indian travelers abroad in 2015 (Ministry of Tourism (India), 2017) Among the top 5 destinations of Indian travelers, there are 4 places in Asia, namely Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and Thailand.These are all places that have welcomed over one million Indian visitors in 2015 In Southeast Asia, Singapore was the place that attracted more than one million Indian visitors in 2015

is included in the list of countries that receive the most attention in Asia and has great potential to exploit and develop heritage tourism On a national scale,Vietnam is at the centre of Asia in terms of geography, has a stable political system, dynamic economy, open foreign policy and is gradually improving its national image Vietnam is a destination for business cooperation and event organization

By the end of 2017, India had 37 UNESCO World Heritage Sites and 43 other locations included in the tentative list of world heritage sites (Reference from the Open Dictionary) In India, New Delhi alone has more than 1200 historical monuments, including three world heritage sites ecognized by UNESCO The cultural assets of India show the brilliant development of stone art Most of the listed temples and religious buildings in India are built with stone carved figures and do not use cement mortar.The Indian Government is making efforts to make New Delhi be recognized

as one of the 200 UNESCO World Heritage Cities in its efforts to preserve the 1000 year old city (Khanh Phuong, 2013)

Vietnam-India Tourism Cooperation: An Assessment of Status and Potential 343

In India, besides the magnificent and beautiful buildings of the architectural style that combine both Hinduism and Islam such as Agra Fort, Sikandra, Rambagh, India also has very rich and variety life styles, cultural heritage and festivals that make India a distinct tourist destination India is not only diverse in terms topography, natural resources and climate, but also a multi-ethnic, multi-lingual, multi-religious community with colorful customs India is the land of fairs and festivals.There is the fair on everyday of the year Fairs and festivals have added colors and identity to the social life of the Indian people Therefore, India is an attractive tourist destination

in all seasons

Across the country there are wildlife conservation areas of thousands of square kilometers Here, the animals are living in the natural environment Each area stores

a number of animals, including one species that is characteristic

India’s diverse terrain also offers many opportunities for adventure tourism sector All interests are met: from the lightest trips to the more activity-oriented and exciting trips; there is always something for each level of competence: from the beginners to the practitioners With rich natural, cultural, religious and historical resources of Vietnam and India, the tourism potential of the two countries is huge which serves as the basis for tourist cooperation development in the future

Services: This element refers to the quality and quantity of the service system that

it determines greatly to the satisfaction of tourists This factor is related to the professional supply capabilities, the willingness to provide services with different requirements with regard to food, medical care, accommodation, internet systems, transportation, guide system etc

Vietnam currently has about 1,752 international travel enterprises, including

5 stated-owned enterprises, 16 joint-ventures companies (Vietnam National Administration of Tourism, 2018), along with Vietnam major brands in tourism industry such as SaigonTourist, Benthanh Tourist, Hanoi Red Tour, Holidays Vietnam, Vietravel, Fiditour, Vietcharm Travel, Hanoitourist…To provide services

to customers, most of the tourist companies proactively combine with local service suppliers where Attractions/Destinations are available Prices of services are generally low compared to other countries in the region.The types of services are also diverse, such as food and accommodation, and are appreciated by international visitors