15/03/10, 11:18:01 EDT

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Lonely Planet Author will stimulate Mekong Forum

eTN Reinhard Hohler, Chiang Mai

According to Mr. Stephen Yong, Director of the Mekong Tourism Office in Bangkok, a talk by Joe Cummings, Lonely Planet Author on Thailand and Laos, will be part of the program during the Mekong Forum on September 26, 2006.

The one-day event is following the tradition of the Mekong Tourism Forum held at different venues from 1996-2005 and will be organised at Challenger 3, IMPACT Muang Thong Thani one day ahead of the opening of the eagerly awaited Thailand Travel Mart 2006 Plus Amazing Gateway to Mekong Region (TTM+). Chiang Mai-based Joe Cummings will talk and stimulate the forum with a talk on his travel experiences in the Mekong Sub-region (GMS), which comprises Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and China’s Yunnan and Guangxi Provinces. Representatives of each of these six countries will also present newly developed GMS products and theme plays. Moderator of the forum program is Ex-PATA Executive Mr. Peter Semone, who now holds a position as team leader in Vietnam in connection with a project sponsored by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Manila. ADB has also financed the publication of the GMS Tourism Sector Strategy for 2006-2010, which will be implemented through 16 major thematic projects and 13 major spatial projects. The vision is to develop the GMS as a single destination and to make substantial contributions to poverty reduction, the empowerment of women, and last not least, sustainable development. Positive impacts will include conservation of the natural and cultural heritage, minimising adverse social problems, such as human trafficking and the ongoing exploiting of children, and providing increased participation by women and ethnic communities throughout the Mekong countries. Tourism in the GMS should be planned and managed properly and in partnership with governments, the private sector and local communities. Only then, there will be a long-term opportunity for growth and development in the region. For further information, please contact GMS Media Travel Consultant Reinhard Hohler by e-mail sara@cmnet.co.th or go to www.adb.org

 Printable Version  | published Aug 21, 2006