Lao tourism can grow to 10 percent of GDP: World Bank

The World Bank has estimated that tourism can grow sufficiently to contribute about 10 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) with the right investments and reforms.
The comment comes at the start of the government’s Visit Laos Year 2024 tourism campaign, which aims to encourage at least 4.6 million people, both from around Laos and other countries, to make trips in the country.

Vangvieng in central Laos is a perennial draw for nature-loving tourists. –Photo World Bank / Souksavanh Sombounkhanh

“This represents a significant economic opportunity: tourism already accounts for about 5 percent of Laos’ gross domestic product,” the World Bank stated.
 “The recovery of the tourism sector is a high priority for Laos. The government is implementing the Laos Tourism Recovery Roadmap 2021-2025. This roadmap provides important guidance on strategic priority actions to support the industry in the post-Covid recovery period (Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, 2021).”
“However, one of the biggest challenges the sector faces is a lack of robust market intelligence regarding the changing nature of key tourism source markets in the context of the post-Covid environment.”
The government can meet the needs of tourists from various markets by enhancing tourism marketing strategies, products, and service standards with the aid of such intelligence.
“Better intelligence can make improved marketing possible, bringing the undoubted potential of Laos as a destination to many more tourists,” the World Bank said.
The new World Bank report provides such market intelligence. It identifies three areas of focus for Lao tourism post-Covid-19, namely market monitoring, skills development, and targeted marketing and promotion.
The Bank’s report also recommends the following priority actions:
• Conduct regular surveys to collect statistics on demand, supply, and social and environmental impacts.
• Digitise the data collection process.
• Develop and implement general hospitality training courses that address sector needs and build workforce capacity.
• Improve the ability of the hospitality industry to communicate with its customers.
• Restart and expand the Chinese tourism market training programme to ensure that operators can cater for the growing Chinese market.
• Focus marketing campaigns on the six priority markets.
• Focus on nature-based tourism.
• Increase the use of social media and internet in marketing campaigns.
With good management, Laos can earn revenue that is distributed widely across the country and its people, with low impact, and sustainable benefits.
The government’s focus on nature-based tourism is of strategic importance to Laos’ green and inclusive growth and recovery from Covid-19.
About 60 percent of Laos’ land area is covered by forests, one-fifth of the country is in protected areas, and the country is home to many internationally important biodiversity areas.
In 2019, the World Bank estimated that with appropriate investments and policies to improve the nature-based tourism environment, the direct contribution of this segment could be up to 8.4 percent over the next 10 years.

By Somsack Pongkhao
 (Latest Update January 23, 2024)