The 26th Meeting of GMS Tourism Working Group was held on Nov 24th in Jinghong, capital city of Xishuangbanna Prefecture in South Yunnan Province.

Participants included tourism officials from China, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar and Thailand, and representatives of Asia Development Bank (ADB), Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO), SNV (Organisation néerlandaise de Développement, Netherland Development Organization) and UN Anti-abducting Organ etc. 

(Picture: Mr. Wu Wenxue)

WU Wenxue (leading CPC member of CNTA, also Chief of Department of Planning and Finance), Yu Dingcheng (Director of Yunnan Tourism Administration, YNTA) and Chen Qizhong (Deputy Governor of Xishuangbanna Prefecture) addressed respectively at the meeting. As entrusted by CNTA, Yu Dingcheng presided over the meeting that was co-sponsored by CNTA and MTCO, but staged by YNTA. 

(Picture: Mr. Yu Dingcheng, Director of YNTA)

Approving the memoirs of the 25th meeting, the meeting also discussed focally on the next schedule of GMS Tourism Developing Strategy and the progresses of projects initiated by countries concerned. 

Besides introducing the situation of tour-routes planning on the “Mekong Upper Reaches Tourism Zone (Golden Quadrangle)” and “West Yunnan-North Myanmar Tourism Zone”, both of which are initiated by China, Yunnan stressed its Bridge-Head strategy and looked to the promising prospect of GMS tourism cooperation.  

In addition, the Executive Director of MTCO notified the preparing work of “Exploring Mekong” and 2011 Mekong Tourism Forum, and introduced the operation ofMekong Tourism Website. Meanwhile, Laos briefed the preparations of 2011 ASEAN Tourism Forum and GMS Tourism Ministerial Conference. It is also learned that the 27th meeting of the Tourism Working Group will be held in May 2011 in Champasak Province, Laos.  
  
Every party had been well prepared for the conference and was active in voicing. Consensus was agreed upon on the issues raised. It’s of great significance that Xishuangbanna was chose to hold the Conference which will greatly improve the int'l popularity of Yunnan and Xishuangbanna, impel the implementation of  China-led  GMS projects and GMS strategic cooperating projects joined by Yunnan, and cement the cooperation between Yunnan and neighboring countries. (Source: ynta.gov.cn)