Tourists wearing face masks while visiting a site in Siem Reap, Cambodia on March 6, 2020 (Photo: AFP/VNA) Hanoi (VNA) - The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism, will support Cambodia to restore the tourism sector after the COVID-19 pandemic ends.
The claim was made during the UNWTO 32nd meeting via video conferencing last week.
Cambodia’s Khmer Times newspaper quoted Tourism Minister Thong Khon as saying that the UNWTO has regarded Cambodia as a priority country in Asia-Pacific and Southeast Asia to receive technical assistance support to restore the tourism sector after the COVID-19.
The minister said that the UNWTO will assist Cambodia with human resource development and exchange experiences in managing the tourism sector after the pandemic.
The Ministry of Tourism is setting the strategic planning to restore the sector while UNWTO will help in technical assistance, he added.
Data from the Ministry of Tourism shows that Cambodia’s tourism sector has shown some positive signs since May, boosted by domestic visitors and foreigners living here with more than 450,000 people travelling to tourism destinations in the country as of June.
The COVID-19 has forced the closure of nearly 3,000 tourism-based businesses in Cambodia and left more than 45,000 staff members unemployed as of May./.
