A policy framework for rural tourism is required

‘The majority of rural tourism destinations develop spontaneously’

On December 18th, the MARD Central New Rural (NR) Coordination Office held a workshop on orientations for management and use of non-business capital to support rural tourism development under “the 2021 - 2025 National Target Program on New Rural Development” (NTP - NRD).

According to Mr. Nguyen Minh Tien, Director - Chief of the MARD Central New Rural (NR) Coordination Office, conservation and promotion of traditional cultural values have been strongly promoted within the implementation of NTP - NRD.

As infrastructure, ecological landscape, and cultural values are now restored and better preserved, many localities have actively carried out many rural tourism models in the past three years.

The One Commune One Product (OCOP) National Program has a group of OCOP products namely community-based tourist attractions. Up to now, thirty-six community-based tourist attractions across the country have been recognized as 3 - 4 stars OCOP.

“It can be seen that even without policies or a policy framework, businesses and other subjects seem to have understood the needs of tourists. They take full advantage of the situation and promote the effects of NTP - NRD to develop rural tourism step-by-step," said Mr. Nguyen Minh Tien.

It can be seen from practice that localities have set their heart on developing rural tourism using models of community-based tourism and eco-tourism. However, the majority of rural tourism destinations develop spontaneously.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development as well as the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism therefore wish to have an overall policy framework to support and create conditions for rural tourism development within NTP - NRD.

An answer to the worry of ‘good harvest but bad price’ or 'good price but bad harvest'

A representative of the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD - MARD) presented “The 2021 -2025 Draft Program on Rural tourism associated with New Rural Development.”

The overall goal of the program is to develop rural tourism in association with promoting the potential and strengths of agriculture as a whole such as craft villages and cultural-ecological environment in localities. The program aims to improve the physical and mental life of rural people and contribute to restructuring the rural economy towards multi-value integration.

The program will contain four key tasks: promote and raise awareness about rural tourism in new rural development; upgrade and invest in tourist destinations while implementing new rural development criteria; develop rural tourism products with signature regional and zonal characteristics; apply pilot models for rural tourism development.

According to Mr. Nguyen Quy Phuong, Director of the Tourism Department (Vietnam National Administration of Tourism - Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism), the development and promotion of tourism in the agricultural sector is of great importance. But so far linking tourism to agriculture to create the rural tourism industry still seems far-fetched.

Mr. Nguyen Quy Phuong raised the issue, “community-based tourism’ is not the correct term. As the rural area is the most comprehensive element, ‘rural tourism’ is what it should be called. The word ‘rural’ already includes ‘community’,  ‘agriculture’, ‘farmstay’, or even ‘homestay”.

Agriculture is on its strong flow of development, and Vietnam’s agro-products have conquered many strict international markets. But the country’s agricultural production is currently entangled with the worry of ‘good harvest but bad price’ or 'good price but bad harvest'.

Farmers need to develop rural tourism so that they can improve agricultural production at a stable rate, as experts say: “away from the farmland, not the homeland.”

Rural tourism development is not only a fated path but also considered as an opportunity to increase people's incomes and at the same time change the awareness, habit and behavior of locals in the context of new rural development. This is a two-way relationship. Rural tourism development will ensure a more sustainable rural area, improve the quality and depth of the new rural areas.

The ultimate goal of rural tourism development is to improve the lives of farmers both physically and mentally.

(Mr. Nguyen Minh Tien, Director - Chief of the MARD Central New Rural Coordination Office)