Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva yesterday singled out Pai in Mae Hong Son province as a model for best practice among tourist destinations, and cited the tourism sector as an important tool in helping to rebuild national unity.
Speaking yesterday at a seminar held on the occasion of the ninth anniversary of the Tourism Council of Thailand, he said the government's reconciliation plan was vital in resolving the conflicts dividing the country.
The tourism sector has the potential to create unity as it can access a wide range of people, he said.
The PM cited the example of the northern district of Pai where, although there were many diverse types of people, they were focused on welcoming all tourists and were opposed to violence.
"I would like all tourism bodies to play the role of leaders for the industry in creating reconciliation in tourist destinations,"he said.
Abhisit said the tourism industry was a sector that brings an enormous sum of money into the country each year, leading to better income distribution. In addition, there is linkage between people's lifestyle and culture.
He said that since assuming the premiership, the tourism business had been hit hard by several factors, notably the global financial crisis and domestic political conflict. However, the industry has been able to pull through and resume its expansion despite the odds.
The Tourism Council of Thailand's target for international visitors this year has been increased to 15.3 million arrivals.
Finance Minister Korn Chatikavanij said that while the Thai tourism sector had been growing for the past 20 years, the revenue generated had not increased as rapidly as expected when compared to other parts of the economy such as manufacturing.
He said the sector had been plunged into crisis when the political conflict first erupted two years ago,
but that it was now on a recovery
path.
However, the government needs tourism to drive the economy and he urged public and private bodies to focus on three emerging market segments, which are expected to help rebuild the sector and strengthen the country's service-sector competitiveness.
The first is to differentiate certain high-potential destinations from the overall market when trying to sell Thailand overseas as an attractive destination.
He cited the possible cluster of Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga, which he said could possibly be differentiated from the rest of the country, just as Bali is marketed as a distinct destination in Indonesia.
Second, Korn urged organisations to take a closer look at promoting inward tourism among senior travellers, as this was now becoming a huge market, and one in which Australia and Norway had already achieved some success.
The Australian government grants qualifying retired foreigners a special visa to stay in the country, while Norway has a scheme whereby older citizens are assisted in relocating to other countries, thus reducing the government's welfare costs.
Third, he said the private and public sectors should promote medical and wellness tourism by allowing foreign doctors to work at hospitals in Thailand.