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ASEAN floats out cruise tourism declaration
Southeast Asian tourism leaders have officially adopted the Singapore-led joint ASEAN Declaration on Cruise Tourism.
It was ratified at last week’s ASEAN Tourism Forum in Chiang Mai and comes a year after it was first mooted at the 2017 ATF in Singapore.
Its aim is to better integrate business practices, cruise policies and regulations and make processes more efficient across member countries.
There is also a commitment from the countries to work closer to further develop cruise tourism in the ASEAN region.
"Singapore is proud to announce that the ASEAN states’ collective efforts to develop the ASEAN Declaration for Cruise Tourism have borne fruit. This builds on our previous work such as the inaugural ATF Cruise Dialogue last year and the launch of the Cruise Southeast Asia brand in 2016," said Sim Ann, senior minister of state at the ministry of trade and industry.
"This will deepen regional connectivity and position ASEAN as a region for seamless economic activity and growing opportunities. We look forward to bringing meaningful benefits to ASEAN businesses and citizens."
Singapore is taking the lead as it has the most developed cruise port in the region and cruise tourism leaders say ASEAN has the potential to handle to 4.5 million cruise passengers in Southeast Asia within the next two decades.
"The future of cruise tourism for both Singapore and the South-east Asian region is bright, with strong potential for growth. Cruise development needs to be a concerted regional effort, and Singapore will continue to actively engage with our ASEAN counterparts to encourage regional cruise development and jointly promote Southeast Asia as a cruising playground for the world," said Lionel Yeo, Singapore Tourism Board CEO.
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