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Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office

Former UNWTO Assistant Secretary General to keynote the 2016 Mekong Tourism Forum

After the launch of the 2015-2020 Experience Mekong Tourism Marketing Strategy and Action Plan last year, this year’s theme of Mekong Tourism Forum is closely aligned in executing on its promise to position the Greater Mekong Subregion as an authentic tourism destination.

Professor Geoffrey Lipman, former Assistant Secretary General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and founding President of the World Travel Tourism Council (WTTC) has agreed to travel all the way from Europe to address the delegates of the 2016 Mekong Tourism Forum with a thought-provoking message by framing authenticity in the context of sustainability.
 
After the launch of the 2015-2020 Experience Mekong Tourism Marketing Strategy and Action Plan last year, this year’s theme is closely aligned in executing on its promise to position the Greater Mekong Subregion as an authentic tourism destination.
 
Professor Lipman, has been active in tourism by pushing policies over the past decades in lobbying for sustainable and responsible development, will underscore that without a Green Growth Strategy that encompasses the Paris 2050 Climate Resilience framework and the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals even the most authentic experiences, products and destinations will be under severe threat.
 
Lipman says “Climate Change is existential, repeat existential and if we don’t fix it in perhaps the most water dependent region in the world, we can stop thinking about authentic tourism and start focusing on survival.” He will discuss how the SUN program will help destinations and their stakeholders get a better handle on these dynamically evolving fundamental transformations.
 
Jens Thraenhart, Executive Director of the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) said: “We are pleased to have such an experienced global travel and tourism expert address this year’s forum, in a time when consumers are looking for authentic experiences, while rapidly growing tourism arrivals in the GMS make sustainable and responsible practices even more critical.
 
The keynote address is scheduled to be followed by a panel, with senior officials from the six member governments, to debate how the governments are managing growth while alleviating poverty via tourism.
 
The 2016 Mekong Tourism Forum will be hosted by the Cambodia Ministry of Tourism (MoT) at the Sokha Beach Resort Sihanoukville at the beautiful Southern Coast of Cambodia from July 5-7. More information, and the most updated agenda is accessible at ww.MekongTourismForum.org. Like last year, MTF strives to be as sustainable of an event as possible, and is looking to move from printed brochures to a mobile app.
 
In order to make it easy for even small and medium sized businesses to get engaged, for the third time in a row, the 2016 Mekong Tourism Forum is free to attend for the first 150 qualified industry professionals, sponsored by the Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia.

 

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