NAKHON PHANOM 26 June 2018: The 21st Mekong Tourism Forum 2018 opens today in this riverside town in northeast Thailand promising a record attendance of 370 delegates.
The annual event that draws tourism decision makers from the six countries of the Greater Mekong Sub-region is being held at the town’s university, 26 to 29 June.
A programme that blends conference hall sessions and novel field trips and workshops focusing on community-based tourism also delivers insights into digital and sharing experiences focusing on the region’s popular Mekong Moments campaign.
A mix of tourism executives from public and private sectors, start-up entrepreneurs, media influencers and filmmakers make up the core attendance figures.
On the eve of the forum, the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office executive director, Jens Thraenhart, said 75% of all delegates would attend eight theme workshops hosted in ethnic villages rather than in a conference hall setting.
“Sustainable tourism with the involvement of local communities is more than ever the task set by Mekong tourism countries and tourism stakeholders through the MTF,” said Thraenhart.
Registrations were still being logged on Monday suggesting the total delegate count could rise to around 400 on the opening day, plus local delegates from Nakhon Phanom.
Numbers wise, this is likely to be the largest Mekong Tourism Forum since its inception in the 1990s.
“We are thrilled by the expected attendance. We have been working hard with the Thailand Ministry of Tourism and Sports, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), and the Provincial Government of Nakhon Phanom to make this year’s MTF a true success. We are encouraged that our new inclusive format for MTF, inaugurated last year in Luang Prabang, is gaining traction,” said Thraenhart.
Early data on registrations showed tourism officials, or those in departments linked to the industry, accounted for 26.5% of all delegates followed by media and bloggers at 18%, academics and consultants with 14%, and start-up founders and entrepreneurs at 12.5%. Over 20% of the participants come from the tourism private sector (hotels, tour operators, travel agencies, transportation and attractions).
“We want to make MTF a lively platform of exchange, discussions and this is why we adopted the MTF 2018 theme, ‘Transforming Travel- Transforming Lives’. Under that theme, we also aim to redefine the way tourism should grow in the Greater Mekong Sub-region,” Thraenhart noted.
The core elements are eight themed strategy workshops in rural communities around Nakhon Phanom, which will bring together villagers and tourism stakeholders to look at new ways to develop sustainable practices.
The battle to rid the world of single-use plastics gains an airing in the morning session, 28 June, when the Plastic Free Pledge social media campaign, hosted on MekongMoments.com will be launched.
It is estimated that every man, woman and child produces on average 136 kg of single-use plastic in this year alone and that by 2025, the plastic dumped into the oceans will be tenfold compared to today.
Similar to last year, the Mekong Tourism Forum 2018 is banning all single-use plastic items from the event to raise awareness and to show the importance the Greater Mekong Subregion can make in creating sustainable travel and tourism practices.
“By providing all delegates with a free kit including a refillable steel water bottle, bamboo straws and a locally hand-woven bag we reduce the impact the event makes on the environment by over 5,000 single-use plastic bottles, plastic lanyard and plastic bags”.
Even delegate badges and lanyards, as well as the shirts delegates receive are produced locally from natural materials.
Another important session will take place on Wednesday 27 June, focusing on Buddhist tourism, one of the fastest growing tourism segments in Asia. Nakhon Phanom is famous for its seven temples each one dedicated to a day of the week to attract visitors born on that day.
The Mekong Tourism Forum 2018 will feature side events including the Mekong Innovative Start-ups in Tourism, as well as the Mekong Mini Movie Festival.
Nakhon Phanom will be the inaugural venue for the Mekong Mini Movie Festival followed by the first ASEAN Film and Destination Marketing Conference.
