The Ministry of Tourism and Sports of Thailand, in cooperation with Chiang Rai Province and the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO), is hosting the Mekong Tourism Forum 2012 (MTF 2012) which is an annual tourism event of the six Mekong countries, namely Cambodia, China, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam.
The Mekong Tourism Forum 2012 is taking place at the Dusit Island Resort Chiang Rai in Chiang Rai province from June 13-14, 2012. It provides a cooperative platform for stakeholders in the tourism industry to discuss development, marketing and promotion of travel within the Greater Mekong Subregion.
The forum addresses the theme: “20/20 Vision: Building on the Two Decades of GMS Cooperation”. The main focus is to assess the challenges of human resources, pro-poor sustainable tourism, sub-regional product development and marketing for the next 20 years, in light of achievement in the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) over the last 20 years.
Speakers have delivered a candid assessment of what progress has, and has not, been accomplished by the member countries and donors such as the Asian Development Bank.
Chiang Rai province is chosen as the host city of the Mekong Tourism Forum 2012 due to its magnificent tourism resources, tourism services and infrastructure. Moreover, Chiang Rai is a gateway to Myanmar and Laos as well as other Mekong countries.
Since 2012 is an important year for Chiang Rai, marking the 750th anniversary of the City; therefore, hosting MTF 2012 is considered a great opportunity for Chiang Rai to celebrate this auspicious event with friends from GMS countries and other international partners.