Hau Giang Pursues Sustainable, Integrated Tourism Development

Hau Giang strives to optimize local resources and diversify tourism products, positioning the sector as a key driver of sustainable economic growth and one of the four pillars of the province’s development strategy.

Chuong Thien Victory Relic 

Unlocking potential advantages

Lying in the western center of the Hau River, Hau Giang province, about 240km from Ho Chi Minh City, has a convenient road and waterway traffic system and possesses a typical riverine landscape, featuring Hau River, Xa No Canal and Quan Lo - Phung Hiep Canal. The province has an ecological landscape associated with Lung Ngoc Hoang Nature Reserve and an agricultural ecological landscape with fruit orchards and immense rice fields to create a peaceful green space, favorable for agricultural eco-tourism and garden tourism.

In addition, tourism advantages come from humanistic tourism resources as the province is a land of cultural exchange, preserves and conserves valuable cultural heritages and historical and revolutionary relics. Diverse and attractive cuisine plus charming products also lure tourists to Hau Giang.

In 2024, the province welcomed 583,000 visitors (equal to 106% of the full-year plan and up 12.15% year on year), including 33,000 international visitors (equal to 110% of the yearly plan and up 30.33% year on year) and 550,000 domestic visitors (equal to 105.77% of the plan and up 11.21% from a year-ago period). Total tourism revenue was estimated at VND264 billion (equal to 110% of the plan and up 11.86% year on year).

Hau Giang continued to effectively operate its tourism promotion website, www.haugiangtourism.vn, and social networking sites like Zalo, Facebook and YouTube; build Hau Giang tourism products; coordinate tourism promotion activities such as Hau Giang Cultural and Culinary Tourism Week and Hau Giang Culinary Competition 2024; and cooperate with relevant units to launch the digital transformation project for tourism, expected to be officially put into operation in early 2025.

Making tourism a spearhead economic sector

Resolution 04-NQ/TU dated November 26, 2021 of the Hau Giang Provincial Party Committee on Hau Giang industrial, agricultural, urban and tourism development in 2021-2025 and beyond defines tourism as one of four strategic breakthrough stages in socioeconomic development. Additionally, the Hau Giang Provincial Planning for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050, also identifies four economic pillars: Modern industry, ecological agriculture, smart urbanization and quality tourism.

The province plans to develop targeted tourism, select potentially strong products, develop tourism into an important economic sector, and create a driving force for the development of other sectors and fields. The province focuses on developing ecotourism and agritourism together with safeguarding natural ecosystems, preserving cultural and historical values and developing high-quality leisure tourism in line with general Mekong Delta development orientation.

Mr. Nguyen Van Bay, Director of the Hau Giang Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said: The province will raise awareness of responsibility in tourism development, with an emphasis on successfully building two tourism highlights: Develop locally distinctive products and form local competing brands by tapping cultural and historical tourism, ecotourism and agritourism potential.

Currently, the department is carrying out the Ha Giang community tourism development project to 2025, with a vision to 2030, and providing professional support and guidance for businesses and households to create more diversified tourism products.

Moreover, the department continues to effectively implement the action plan for the tourism development cooperation program between Ho Chi Minh City and 13 Mekong Delta provinces and cities in 2021 - 2025, as well as tourism development cooperation programs with other localities.

The agency continuously reforms methods, scales up digital applications in tourism promotion and advertising, gradually socializes tourism promotion, and hosts and co-hosts political, cultural, artistic and sporting events to attract visitors.

At the same time, the department pays attention to training, fostering and improving the quality of human resources to meet new requirements; focuses on investing in transport infrastructure in tourist sites and development-driving areas; and quickly completes traffic projects (expressways and national highways) to facilitate tourism development (especially the Mekong City & Resort Project and the Lung Ngoc Hoang Nature Reserve Ecotourism Project).

Regarding support for businesses and investors, the agency will improve the business environment, boost investment in infrastructure development projects and tourism services, and act to remove difficulties for investors to complete and bring their projects into operation soon.

Hoai Nam (Vietnam Business Forum)