Saturday, February 6, 2021

ASEAN Tourism Association promotes reopening of borders

Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA / Image: Aviva is one of many emerging insurance companies providing covid insurance policies in Singapore. ASEANTA is promoting borders reopening as a result.


The ASEAN Tourism Association (ASEANTA) is promoting the reopening of the borders of the ten ASEAN countries at the 24th ASEAN Tourism Ministerial Conference which was held on 4 February 2021.

The Bangkok Post quoted ASEANTA Chairman Mingkwan Metmowlee as saying on 4 February that the ASEANTA, which includes the private sector and national tourism organizations of 10 member countries, will call on ASEAN countries in the first or second quarter of this year to reopen tourism  because the industry is on the verge of collapse and urgent action is needed.

Mingkwan believes that if the borders of the 10 member countries continues to be closed, the tourism industry in the region will lose more than 70% of jobs but if the tourism industry recovers, it will face a labour shortage crisis. The ASEANA recommends that 10 countries draft a regional framework for cross-border travel, formulate standard operating procedures for the entire tourism ecosystem, and the first quarter of this year's vaccine test plan and vaccination plan, in order to prepare for the border reopening plan.

The association suggested that in the first half of this year, Southeast Asian countries should begin to consider receiving business travelers from the 10 ASEAN countries and three dialogue partner countries including China, Japan and South Korea. For people from places where there is no risk of infection or a lower risk of infection, their isolation time can be reduced.

For leisure travelers, the 10 ASEAN countries should resume all types of tourism in October this year. The support required at this stage includes the issuance of a digital health passport, which contains each tourist's immunization record and related information. The adoption of the digital health passport system by all countries will help bypass mandatory quarantine and make people’s travel safer.

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