The European Union (EU) will provide EUR11 million of non-refundable aid for an environment and society responsible tourism (ESRT) development program in Vietnam in the 2011-2015 period. A ceremony to announce the finance agreement for the country’s largest tourism technical assistance project was organized in Hanoi on Jan 14 in the presence of Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Ho Anh Tuan, and Head of the EU Delegation to Vietnam, Ambassador Sean Doyle. The Vietnamese government will contribute around EUR1 million to the program that will be carried out by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT). The project which is designed to step up the provision of ESRT services, thereby supporting the implementation of Vietnam Tourism Development Strategy, will focus on building policies and institutions, improving competitiveness and public-private partnership, and promoting education and vocational training. Officials of VNAT, provincial-level tourism managers, associations, civil organizations and communities will benefit from the program. EU is one of the biggest donors for the country’s tourism industry. The ESRT program was built based on the success of another EU-funded tourism human resources development project, which was carried out from 2004 to February 2010. (www.cpv.org.vn [1] Jan 16, An Ninh Thu Do – Capital Security Jan 17 p17)
