QUẢNG NINH — Trần Minh Hội, owner of a restaurant in the central highlands province of Pleiku is among 20 people featured in the book Tourism Stories - The Việt Nam Edition. 

The book was officially released by the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism yesterday in the framework of the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2019 (ATF 2019), honouring outstanding people who have actively contributed to the development of Việt Nam’s tourism sector.

Hội’s restaurant, Nhà Tôi (My Home), which features central highland specialties, is not just a place to eat but also a tourist destination that provides stable livelihoods for local ethnic minorities. The eatery follows a closed supply model where visitors and diners can see various stages of production from watering vegetables, feeding pigs or chicken, to cooking food.

Hội said: “I am quite surprised that my business got attention from the organisers and that I had the honour to be featured in this book.”

The book features the stories of 20 people that are active in Việt Nam’s tourism industry. Each story honours the values that Viet Nam’s tourism industry has brought to the lives of people throughout the country, and affirmed the role of the tourism industry in socio-economic development.

Proud: Trần Minh Hội at the book launch ceremony held in Hạ Long City on Friday. He is among the 20 tourism people featured in the book Tourism Stories - The Việt Nam Edition. — VNS Photo Hồng Vân

The storytellers and their stories are diverse, ranging from running an eco-tourism hub to protecting ancient gong culture, or going from a sausage maker to a celebrity chef for world leaders.

Releasing the book, Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Lê Quang Tùng said: “I hope and believe that the book, with exciting stories on Việt Nam’s tourism, will give readers a unique insight into the country’s tourism sector and through you as the readers, these stories will reach out to the world and Việt Nam will be widely known as an attractive, unique, safe and friendly destination for visitors.”

The book also shows the commitment of the Government to the development of national cultural identity, socio-economic development, protection of environmental resources, and improvement of locals’ lives through tourism.

“I believe that the initiative of the UNWTO about the book will continue to be positively received by global audiences and inspire more initiatives towards the sustainable development of the ASEAN region in the future,” Tùng said.

The idea of the Tourism Stories book was first initiated by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in 2013 to ‘capture voices of tourism employees from across the globe’. It allows readers to gain an ‘insight into how people and communities are shaped by the sector, highlighting how an individual’s work has the ability to unlock community value chains, inspire empowerment and revitalise traditions of the past to set the foundations for the future’.

Việt Nam has a total of 15 winners at ASEAN Tourism Award.

ASEAN award

Also in the framework of the ATF 2019, the ASEAN Tourism Award was given to more than 150 tourism products of the ten member countries yesterday for four categories: community-based tourism, spa services, public toilets and homestays in the framework of the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2019.

Việt Nam had a total of 15 winners for all four categories.

Lê Văn Hiệp, director of the Kim Hoàng Hiệp Trading, Service and Environment Limited Company, one of the winners in the public toilet category, said: “This award is an honour and has a special meaning to us. It marks a milestone in improving public toilets in Việt Nam. It also helps to change the image of Việt Nam’s public toilets in the eyes of tourists.

“One of the problems with toilets in Việt Nam is they are still considered a minor thing so raising awareness of the local people about improving the quality of toilets is crucial. This award will be a motivation for us to increase the number and improve the quality of public toilets and toilets in schools, health and tourism sectors,” said Hiệp.

Jeffrey M.Pino, from the Municipal Tourism Office of Rizal Province, the Philippines, said: “The ASEAN Tourism Award is very important to us because this recognises the achievements of tourism and the community of indigenous people of the Philippines. Community-based tourism (CBT) provides livelihood for the indigenous community and means a lot in terms of environmental protection.

“Because of climate change issues, CBT is very important not only for our country but the whole world because taking care of the environment is an urgent task now. Local government has provided livelihood, a source of income for people protecting the environment, forest and natural resources and contributing to the environment of the world.”

The ASEAN Tourism Forum closed on Friday. It is estimated that around 2,000 delegates attended the forum, which is considered the most important event of Việt Nam’s tourism sector with a range of events including high-ranking meetings of ministers, ASEAN National Tourism Organisations (NTOs), ASEAN Plus Three meeting, airline association, hotel & restaurant associations as well as conference and travel trade fairs. — VNS