New initiative to boost tourism investment and innovation in Mekong region

A new initiative to catalyse tourism sector growth in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam has been launched.

Tourists at a beach in Danang City. Photo by Danang.gov.vn

The Mekong Initiative for Start-up Tourism (MIST) invites start-ups, particularly those led by locals to participate in a contest to develop solutions for identified tourism market opportunities, winners of which will be matched with suitable investors.

The first MIST reverse hackathon and tourism start-up competition will take place in Danang in early 2017.

The official organisers of MIST are the Mekong Tourism Co-ordinating Office (MTCO) and the Mekong Business Initiative (MBI). MTCO receives funding from the governments of Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam.

MBI receives funding from the Asian Development Bank and the Australian government.

In Vietnam, MIST is co-organised with the Danang Business Incubator (DNES). Partners include the Seoul Global Start-up Centre and the Swiss government-funded SECO Entrepreneurship Programme.

“Tourism is a major industry in Danang and the Start-up Council is committed to foster start-ups and promote innovative approaches to the sustainable growth of the industry,” said Vo Duy Khuong, chairman of the Danang Start-up Network Co-ordinating Council and Danang Business Incubator.

“Innovation and technologies are transforming the world’s tourism sector, but the Mekong region has lagged behind. We are eager to see the region’s start-ups innovate and create new avenues for tourism growth,” said Dominic Mellor, head of the MBI at the Asian Development Bank.

“The Greater Mekong Subregion is a magnet for tourism, but accelerating tourist volumes have also brought challenges to drive inclusive growth. The region will need to develop and innovate if it is to sustain today’s growth over the long term,” said Jens Thraenhart, Executive Director of the MTCO.

The MIST programme works with local tourism industry players to identify critical industry challenges and bottlenecks. The programme then solicits global solutions from experienced innovators, encourages exchanges between global providers and start-ups led by locals, and structures competition between start-up teams. The best start-up teams from across the region’s four countries will be invited to an intensive boot-camp and Demo Day at the 2017 Mekong Tourism Forum in Luang Prabang in Laos. The best Vietnamese start-ups will be further invited to a Demo Day at the APEC Investment Summit in November 2017 in Danang.