Representatives from Asian-Pacific countries gathered at a two-day Conference on International Cooperation for Tourism Development under a New Paradigm, which closed in Beijing Tuesday after issuing the Hong Kong Declaration on the Revitalization of the Asian Tourism Industry.

The declaration pledges to reassure travelers from the world of their safety in the Asian-Pacific region, and invite them to resume their holidays and business trips to the region.

The declaration also says they will enhance and strengthen international coordination and monitoring systems through effective liaison and networking between governments and appropriate international organizations. They will promote effective crisis management plans by adopting best practices and sharing information thereby ensuring the long-term sustainability of the tourism sector.

Asian-Pacific countries will unite and promote inter-governmental cooperation in addressing the issues of travel advisories and facilitation of travel.

Over 1,300 delegates from 48 countries and regions participated in the conference, jointly sponsored by Bo'ao Forum for Asia and World Tourism Organization and hosted by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The action itself is believed to be a positive gesture for regional tourism development.

They all recognized the need to prepare tourism professionals in various aspects of crisis management and recovery plans.

The participants also attached importance to fostering greater inter-governmental cooperation to promote the growth of intra-regional tourism, a key driver for Asian tourism, economic and social developments.

Francesco Frangialli, secretary-general of the World Tourism Organization, told the press Monday that East Asia and the Pacific region, which posted an 8.3 percent growth rate in tourist arrivals last year, have proven to be the driving force of growth for international tourism.

Statistics indicated that international tourist arrivals to Asia reached 131 million in 2002, which made Asia rank second in terms of the world most welcomed region for tourism.

Experts here believed that the Asia-Pacific region has the greatest potential in tourism development and the growth of their tourism industry will surely change the map of world tourism development.

Long Yongtu, secretary general of the Bo'ao Forum for Asia, told Xinhua Tuesday that it is high time and right place for convening such a conference, which is expected to greatly push ahead the recovery of the tourism industry in SARS-hit Hong Kong and in the whole region.

He said that tourism development will be a good point for advancing the economic recovery.

Tourism is believed to be an industry that has less competition and more space for cooperation, Long said.

Cooperation and coordination among governments and private sectors is also a major topic at the conference.

Taking the conference as a good advertising venue, quite a number of participants introduced their countries' new measures for tourism promotion, apart from urging Asian-Pacific countries and regions to unite under one banner for a common cause -- tourism development.

Verdinejad Fereydoun, Iranian ambassador to China, welcomed other Asian countries and regions to invest in his country's tourism projects.

Talking about the concrete progress generated by the conference besides the declaration, Eva Cheng, commissioner for tourism of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, said at Tuesday's session that Hong Kong signed Monday with the Philippines a memo of understanding on strengthening their tourism partners relations.

Frangialli said that the coming World Tourism Organization's general assembly in Beijing in mid October will confirm that tourism is back on track and will soon re-emerge as it once was --a vigorous and powerful engine for economic development in the entire region.

(Xinhua News Agency July 16, 2003)