Government And Private Sector Partner To Form Solutions For The Revival Of Cambodia’s Tourism Industry
The ‘Cambodia Tourism Revival Workshop’ was held at the Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra on July 25, 2024, to bring together key industry players for strategic discussions on what can be done to revive Cambodia’s tourism industry.
Organised by the Cambodia Tourism Federation, the workshop was presided over by H.E. Sok Soken, Minister of Tourism, and Ith Vichit, CEO of the newly-established Cambodia Tourism Board (CTB), while around 200 tourism stakeholders were in attendance.
Importantly, the discussions held at the workshop would act as the basis for a comprehensive report that will be submitted to the Cambodian Prime Minister’s office by July 31, seeking immediate action.
At the opening ceremony, the tourism minister spoke of the current challenges faced by the industry in Cambodia particularly due to a shift in travel behaviours, which has led to a slower than expected recovery rate.
Watch a snippet of H.E. Sok Soken's speech from the Cambodia Tourism Revival Workshop:
“Travellers are now a bit more mindful, I think, due to many geo-strategic elements, and travel decisions have somewhat changed,” said Soken.
Air travel has decreased from 60 to 40 per cent, land travel has increased from 40 to 60 per cent, and regarding the number of tourists who have traditionally visited [the usual] tourist destinations that we are prepared for, the recovery has not been quite the same, it has not been what we expected.
“This is precisely where the challenge lies – behaviours have shifted. On top of bringing solutions to provide good quality services for travellers, we are also looking at diversifying our destinations, our products and diversifying our target markets,” he added.
Cambodia’s New Tourism Board
A new tourism board was recently established, independent from the ministry of tourism, featuring equal representation from the private sector and the Cambodian government.
The board’s representatives from the private sector include those from the Cambodia Tourism Federation, Cambodia Airports, the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce (CCC) and the Cambodian Oknha Association (COA). Board members from the government’s side include representatives of various relevant ministries, including tourism, economy and finance, environment, commerce, and more.
Ith Vichit was nominated as the CTB’s first CEO earlier in July. The Cambodia Tourism Revival Workshop marked the first major event convening members of the CTB and the wider tourism industry since the board’s establishment.
“It is a historical day for the tourism industry in Cambodia, as we are witnessing the birth of a true Public-Private Partnership between the Ministry of Tourism and the tourism industry’s private sector via the CTB,” said Vichit during the workshop’s opening.
CTB’s mission and purpose is to serve the common good, which is to confront the reality of the industry and find pragmatic solutions to all the challenges that we face with the objective of unleashing Cambodia's true tourism potential through diversified supply-side product offerings and continued quality enhancement of our services, to increase inbound tourist demand within the context of sustainable tourism, to make Cambodia become an unforgettable tourism destination in the years to come.
Watch a snippet of Ith Vichit's speech from the Cambodia Tourism Revival Workshop:
The tourism minister also mentioned his ministry’s efforts to restructure its approach to help address persisting difficulties in the tourism industry. He expressed hope that the CTB will be able to perform its function effectively and foster strong collaboration between the public and private sectors.
“The government and the Ministry of Tourism within this mandate, has been putting a lot of effort into socialising changes, restructuring, and modernising our approach in addressing the tourism sector, and I hope that by establishing the CTB, it is clear that in order to work effectively as partners with the private sector, we need a strong capacity within the government… but at the same time, the capacity also needs to be reassessed across all sectors,” said Soken.
He added:
I do encourage that through the CTB, we will have the opportunity here to enhance and restructure where needed in terms of improving our productivity and our way of conducting our work by encouraging close collaboration, and enhancing governance within both public and private sectors alike. I think it's only through this collaborative approach and open dialogue and engagement through the CTB, that we can have a meaningful partnership.
