Sustainable Destination Management
Strategies in the OIC Member Countries
87
Figure 31: Greater Mekong Subregion Tourism Structure
Source: Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (2018)
GMS tourism ministers
appoint NTO officials to represent GMS countries at GMS TWC
meetings and other regional forums. They meet periodically to, among other
activities, (i) endorse GMS and other regional tourism strategies; (ii) promote
cooperation between tourism and other sectors, and (iii) approve resources to
implement strategic programs and projects.
GMS senior officials
act as GMS national coordinators and head of each country’s GMS
national secretariat. They frequently meet to formulate strategies and policies for the
evaluation of GMS ministers, review sector plans, and coordinate policy and
operational aspects of the GMS Economic Cooperation Program.
The
GMS Tourism Working Group
includes senior officials from each GMS NTO. It
serves as an advisory board to the MTCO and provides operational leadership and
technical guidance to plan, implement, monitor, and evaluate sub-regional activities;
The
Mekong Tourism Coordination Office
promotes, among a range of many activities
(i), the practical cooperation among governments, (ii) plans, coordinates, and
implements programs, and (iii) continuously upgrades and maintains the online
portals of such programs, including their main online portal,
www.mekongtourism.org;
The
National tourism working groups
set priorities for national implementation of
sub-regional programs and projects;
Development partners
(international and bilateral finance institutions, CSOs, industry
associations, academic institutions, and the media) engage in levels such as (i)
finances to support strategic programs and projects or (ii) provide policy advice;