(AseanAll)  —  The Kingdom of Cambodia and the Lao People's Democratic Republic have discussed opportunities for sustainable and resilient tourism cooperation between the two countries, especially in the areas of boosting mutual tourism flows and strengthening sub-regional competitiveness through joint efforts.

The discussion took place here on January 8 between Cambodian Minister of Tourism SOK Soken and Buakeo PHUMVONGSAY, Lao Ambassador to Cambodia, according to a press release of the Ministry of Tourism.

On this occasion, the Minister warmly welcomed Ambassador and highlighted the factors of peace and stability that are key to the development of tourism in Cambodia.  SOK Soken also presented the joint strategic initiative of the Ministry of Tourism, known as "BUILD+3Ds", with the vision to turn Cambodia into a vibrant, competitive, sustainable and environmentally friendly tourism destination.

The Ambassador congratulated Minister on his appointment as Minister of Tourism for the seventh mandate.  The two sides recalled the spirit of the meeting between HUN Manet, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and Sonexay Siphandone, Prime Minister of Lao PDR, and Pham Minh Chinh, Prime Minister of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam during the ASEAN-Japan Summit in Tokyo, Japan on Dec. 17, 2023, wherein they agreed to further promote tourism cooperation, especially the promotion of the tourism policy "Three Countries, One Destination".

In this regard, the Minister and the Ambassador further discussed the establishment of technical working groups of the three countries to discuss the joint action plan and examine the possibility of organising a Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam Trilateral Ministerial Meeting during the upcoming ASEAN Tourism Forum 2024 in January 2024 in Vientiane, Lao PDR.

The Minister also expressed his full support for Lao PDR in hosting the ASEAN Tourism Forum 2024 (ATF2024) and the ASEAN Summit 2024.  At the same time, the Minister recalled the long-standing friendship between Cambodia and Lao PDR, and based on this cordial historical relationship, the Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia will strive to increase cooperation, especially in regards to facilitating more direct flights.

The Ambassador thanked the Minister as well as the Cambodian leadership for their continued support and assistance to each other in the international arena, especially in their efforts to strengthen ties between the two countries.  

Finally, both sides expressed their commitment to further strengthen and expand tourism cooperation through the organisation of joint tourist activities and events, tourism promotion and marketing, and people-to-people relations between the two countries.