1. The Tenth Meeting of the ASEAN, China, Japan and the Republic of Korea (ASEAN Plus Three/APT) Tourism Ministers was held on 18 January 2011 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in conjunction with the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2011 and the Fourteenth Meeting of ASEAN Tourism Ministers (M-ATM). The Meeting was preceded by the APT NTOs Meeting held on 16 January 2011 in Phnom Penh. The Meeting was chaired by H.E. Dr. Thong Khon, Minister of Tourism of Cambodia, with H.E. Mr. Jero Wacik, Minister of Culture and Tourism of Indonesia, acting as Vice Chairman.
2. Given the global economic slowdown in 2009 and 2010, the Ministers were pleased to note that tourist arrivals of APT countries in 2010 remained resilient with more than 101 million arrivals, which is 14.40 per cent growth compared to 2009. Intra-ASEAN+3 travel continued to be the important source market for the whole region, with more that 57 million arrivals or 56 per cent of share.
3. The Ministers welcomed the decisions of the APT and the respective ASEAN Plus One Summits held on 29 October 2010 in Ha Noi, Viet Nam, and expressed their full support to the implementation of the APT Cooperation Work Plan (2007-2017). The Ministers also welcomed the adoption of the Master Plan on ASEAN Connectivity and the conclusions of the ASEAN Multilateral Agreement on Full Liberalisation of Passenger Air Services (MAFLPAS) and the ASEAN-China Air Transport Agreement, which will significantly enhance air accessibility tothe region. The Ministers looked forward to the early conclusion of the ASEAN-ROK Air Transport Agreement and Japan’s policy to further expand “Open Skies” with ASEAN Member States.
4. The Ministers welcomed the adoption of the ASEAN Tourism Strategic Plan (ATSP) 2011-2015 which define the policies, programmes and projects of the ASEAN in the areas of tourism marketing, product development, quality tourism, human resources development, investment, and communication, among others. The Ministers from China, Japan and ROK expressed their strong support for, and willingness to provide assistance to ASEAN to successfully implement the ATSP.
5. In reviewing the implementation of tourism measures under the APT Cooperation Work Plan 2007-2017, the Ministers were pleased with the progress of APT joint activities implemented in 2010, including APT Youth Traveller Programme organised by Thailand on 15-21 November, 2010 in Bangkok, Cha am, Suphanburi and Sukhothai. In line with the APT Cooperation Work Plan and the ATSP, the Ministers tasked their officials to develop a work plan for APT Tourism Cooperation covering the development of quality tourism through, where appropriate, the promotion of ASEAN’s environmental management standards and certification programmes for sustainable tourism and concrete collaboration in cultural and eco-tourism, cruise tourism, youth exchange, manpower development, joint tourism marketing and promotion, and quality assurance, as well as safety measures for tourists.
6. The Ministers appreciated China for its supports to ASEAN Member States and the ASEAN Secretariat in participating at China International Travel Mart (CITM) 2010 through the establishment of ASEAN Common Area, and also the training provided to travel agents and NTOs staff. The Ministers looked forward to the early operation of the ASEAN-China Centre which will contribute to the expansion of the tourism sector, among others.
7. The Ministers thanked Japan for the support provided in implementing various ASEAN-Japan tourism projects/activities in 2010, including the convening of the Quality Service Training Workshop held on June- July 2010 in CLMV Countries, ASEAN Fair 2010 held on 15-20 September 2010 in Kagoshima city, the technical workshop on Sustainable Development of Tourism Destination for BIMP-EAGA held on November 2010 in Tokyo.
8. The Ministers expressed their appreciation to ROK for the concrete work programmes in further progressing tourism cooperation with ASEAN to implement the Plan of Action of the Joint Declaration on ASEAN- Republic of Korea Strategic Partnership for Peace and Prosperity (2011-2015), such as the annual training program for ASEAN tour guides for their better understanding of Korean culture and language, marketing partnership and promotion, and publishing ASEAN pamphlets in Korean language.
9. The Ministers expressed their sincere appreciation to the Government and People of Cambodia for the warm hospitality accorded to the delegations and the excellent arrangements made for the meeting.
LIST OF MINISTERS
The Meeting was attended by:
(i) H.E. Pehin Dato Yahya, Minister of Industry and Primary Resources, Brunei Darussalam;
(ii) H.E. Dr. Thong Khon, Minister of Tourism, Cambodia;
(iii) Mr. Lin Shan, Director General of China National Tourism Administration, China;
(iv) H.E. Mr. Jero Wacik, Minister of Culture and Tourism, Indonesia;
(v) H.E. Mr. Shuji Ikeguchi, Senior Vice-Minister for Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, Japan;
(vi) H.E. Dr. Mo Chul Min, Vice-Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Rep. of Korea;
(vii) H.E. Mr. Somphong Mongkhonvilay, Minister, Chairman of Lao National Tourism Administration, Lao PDR;
(viii) H.E. Dato Dr. James Dawos Mamit, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Malaysia;
(ix) H.E. Mr. Soe Naing, Minister, Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, Myanmar;
(x) H.E. Mr. Alberto A. Lim, Secretary of Tourism, Philippines;
(xi) H.E. Mr. S. Iswaran, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry, Singapore;
(xii) H.E. Mr. Chumpol Silapa-archa, Minister of Tourism and Sports, Thailand;
(xiii) H.E. Mr. Ho Anh Tuan, Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Viet Nam; and
(xiv) H.E. Mr. Sundram Pushpanathan, Deputy Secretary-General for ASEAN Economic Community, ASEAN Secretariat.
