HCM CITY— The Việt Nam Tourism Education Association (VITEA) was launched on Monday in HCM City with a mission to enhance the quality of human resources in the tourism sector.

Founded by the Việt Nam Tourism Association, the group includes universities, colleges, vocational training schools, research institutions, enterprises, organisations and individuals involved in the sector.

It will develop tourism training and promote links between schools and enterprises.

Speaking at its first congress, Vũ Thế Bình, deputy director of the Việt Nam Tourism Association, said that Việt Nam had huge potential for tourism development.

The tourism sector has an impact on socio-economic development, Bình said, adding that with global integration, the need for qualified human resources in various segments of the industry were pressing issues.

The establishment of VITEA will help the tourism sector become a spearhead industry, he added.

Between 2016 and 2017, the association will coordinate with the General Directorate of Vocational Training to develop occupational skills standards, a database for practice and job opportunities, and tourism training programmes using English as the language of instruction.

It will also organise symposiums on training of tourism human resources, job orientation events and international exchanges in training of tourism staff.

Professor Đào Mạnh Hùng, former head of The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism’s Training Department, is the director of VITEA.

“The quality of lecturers needs to be improved,” Hùng said. “On-demand training solutions will also be developed to help a trained workforce meet practical requirements of enterprises in the tourism sector.” —VNS