Potentials for the development of herbal medicine tourism In the Seven Mountain Area, an Giang Province (https://doi.org/10.63386/610536)

Huynh Thanh Tien, Ph.D.[1]

Huynh Thanh Viet, M.Sc.[2]

Phan Van Chi, M.A.[3]

To Thien Hien, Ph.D.[4]

Abstract

Tourism plays a vital role in promoting Vietnam’s economy, and it has become one of the most important driving forces for the country’s economic development that it contributes over six percent to Vietnam’s GDP every year. To a developing country like Vietnam, a boom in the tourism industry can enable to generate a substantial amount of economic benefits directly through hotels, resorts, restaurants, souvenir sales, etc., and directly to tourism-related businesses through the supply of goods and services. Thus, the Vietnamese government, in 2011, released “the Strategy on Vietnam’s tourism development until 2020, vision to 2030” to provide guidelines for cities and provinces to promote their tourism industry, and as part of this strategy, Vietnam aims to attract 17 to 20 million international visitors in 2020. In November 2019, Vietnam welcomed 16.3 million international travelers, a 15.4 % year-on-year increase. This paper reviews various types of tourism defined by the UNWTO, especially showing a developing potential of herbal medicine tourism in the world and in Vietnam currently. Also, it provides a brief overview of the Mekong River Delta region’s development plan as well well the natural geography of An Giang province and the provincial development of various tourism types. The paper is ended with some recommendations for the feasibility of developing the province’s tourism sector and especially of developing its herbal medicine tourism in the Seven Mountains, a holy area of An Giang province, the Mekong River Delta region.

Key words: An Giang province, Herbal medicine tourism, the Mekong River Delta region, the Seven Mountains, Tourism industry

1. Tourism and tourism types

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) defined tourism as the activities of persons travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business or other purposes. (UNWTO, Tourism to the Year 2000: Recommendations on Tourist Statistics, 1994). This definition acknowledges that tourism occurs both between and within countries (i.e., international and domestic tourism) and that it covers overnight visitors who stay as well as those who visit for part of a day (Lickorish, L. J.; Jenkins, C. L., 1997).

The World Tourism Organization defines three basic types of tourism, they include domestic tourism (the activities carried out by a person within their country of residence as part of a touristic trip), inbound tourism (carried out by a non-resident tourist in the destination as part of a touristic trip), and outbound tourism (tourism activities undertaken outside the country of residence). These types can be combined with each other to give rise to other categories:

• Internal Tourism: combines domestic and inbound tourism, as it encompasses the activities that both foreigners and nationals undertake within the borders of a country.
• National Tourism: Combines domestic and outbound tourism, as it involves trips made by residents of the same country both within and outside its borders.
• International Tourism: carried out both by residents outside their country of residence (outbound) and by foreigners within the borders (inbound).

(Hotelmize, 2023) Cohen (2004) categorized tourism into institutionalized and non-institutionized. The institutionized mass is the type that the tourist who goes to an agency in search of a tourist package. They make individual trips, taking advantage of the destination’s infrastructure established for mass tourism while the organized mass is the type that these travelers take organized tours where all the details are covered and there are no surprises of any kind. It is usually family tourism without any major variations. For the non-institutionized, Cohen (2004) classified it into drifter, the independent backpacker, not dependent the infrastructure and having little influence on the destination as interacting with the environment and usually integrating with it, and explorer, which the tourist seeking new experiences, often extreme with having priorities of experiences and sacrifizing comforts.

Cohen also proposes another division of tourism based on the importance of travel in people’s lives. This division consists of five types of experience: fun or recreational tourism, distraction tourism, experiential tourism, experimental tourism, existential tourism (Cohen, 2004). Additionally, Valene Smith (1989) classified tourism according to motivation of the trip as recreational, cultural, ethnic, environmental, historical. And later she expands the classification according to tourist types, where she describes: (1) explorers who engage with the destination environment, willing to adapt their behaviors to the environment, choosing to visit less- traveled places, and not wanting to be seen as tourists;(2) elite tourists who travel in small groups and adapt to local life, but for a limited time, and demanding more amenities; (3) Off-beat tourists who are independent tourists, breaking away from traditional itineraries and looking to see new places with users’guidebooks for tips; (4) unusual tourists who travel on package tours or tours to visit indigenous communities, with interests in contemplatively local cultures, and demanding the comforts of modern life so as not to take risks in the exchange; (5) incipient mass tourists are those who are beginning to demand infrastructure in the destinations they visit; (6) mass tourists, not forgoing the comforts of their country of origin and expecting to be served in their own language;

(7) charter tourists, purchasing tours for short periods of time, demanding high-quality services and having almost no interaction with the local environment (Smith, 1989). Meanwhile, UNWTO defined tourism according to the destination and purpose of the trip that can be summarized as follows: Rural tourism (experiencing nature, culture and productive activities in rural areas), Ecotourism (responsible contact with the natural environment, where the tourist observes  and

carries out activities in the open air), Adventure tourism (contacting with nature, involving physical dexterity to undertake activities that are generally carried out in the open air, Cultural Tourism (takeing place in destinations that have a remarkable cultural heritage and preserve its value to discover and enjoy these values and traditions, Business Tourism (the trip for business or professionally motivated, entailing a specific approach by demanding travelers, with little time and particular needs, Gastronomic Tourism (involving culinary experiences in the destination, which can range from enjoying a meal to learning how to cook, Coastal, Maritime and Inland Water Tourism (including all water-related activities such as sun and beach tourism, Urban Tourism (takeing place in a non-agricultural economic environment in urban areas that offer a wealth of experiences related to art, architecture, commerce, social activities and good transport connectivity, Health tourism (relating to the physical, mental or spiritual health benefit that travel can offer, provided by specific activities), Mountain Tourism (enjoying the attributes of the environment of mountains), Educational Tourism (focused on acquiring new skills and knowledge), Sports Tourism (aimed at those who are going to enjoy or watch a sporting activity (UNWTO, Glossary of tourism terms, 2023).

• Herbal medicine tourism

The global trend in tourist consumption behavior has widely impacted all types of tourism. In the past, tourists visited natural attractions such as seas, waterfalls, mountains, and caves in order to observe natural phenomena and man-made tourism sites such as Buddhist temples, castles, palaces, and other historic sites. As people have become wealthier and transportation improved, tourists have changed their preferences (Galvani, 2005). They are also in need of knowing more community information and sharing the benefits of tourism. Other types of tourism such as ecotourism, cultural tourism, community-based tourism, health tourism, culinary tourism, and rural tourism has caught tourists’ attention (D’mello, 2008). In addition, tourists are concerned about diseases from tainted foods or poor sanitary conditions. Herbs are used for many purposes including eating, treating, smoking, massaging, etc. Herbs have a longstanding reputation in many countries in the world, including India and other South Asian countries, as a rejuvenator, helping concentration, and memory improvement. Herbal foods provide nutrients to cure or treat injury or disease. Plenty of healthy herbs have been grown in rural areas for hundreds of years and most herbal plants have been seen as the raw ingredients used for cooking and treating sickness. They are also considered as the product of local wisdom, making rural areas a source of natural, cultural, and local wisdom (Ratanakomut, 2006). Herbal medicine niche tourism as an integrated tourism-education and learning have become an increasingly important and recognized component of travel activity and travel experiences (Canadian Tourism Commission, 2001). Educational tourism has developed because of the growing population of travellers who have a formal

education, the importance of education in motivating people to travel, and the growing popularity of formal teaching and learning outside the classroom environment. Travel for educational purposes can be a diverse and complicated area of study (Ritchie, J. R. B.; Sheehan, L. R.; Timur, S., 2008). Botanical gardens, such as traditional herbal medicine tourist parks, are good examples of a sort of open-air museum (Benfield, 2013) that exhibits and educates about traditional medicine as places of intangible cultural heritage. Neda Torabi Farsani, Hossein Zeinali & Maedeh Moaiednia (2016) stated that herbal medicine-based tourism is an integrated form of tourism that includes elements of food tourism, health and wellness tourism, tea tourism, heritage tourism, educational tourism, ecotourism, and agritourism. In the form of traditional herbal medicine tourist Park/Farm, a tourist can learn about the medicinal plant species, their planting and harvesting (educational tourism, agritourism, or ecotourism), and their therapeutic properties (health and wellness tourism); and the tourist guide should be knowledgeable of traditional medicine to explain how to use and serve the medicinal plants as an aromatic beverage commonly prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured leaves, like tea (tea tourism, heritage tourism) or a floral beverage (food tourism) (Neda Torabi Farsania; Hossein Zeinali; and Maedeh Moaiednia, 2016). The authors provided a model of herbal medicine tourism as follow:

Figure 1. Herbal medicine niche tourism as an integrated tourism form (Neda Torabi Farsania; Hossein Zeinali; and Maedeh Moaiednia, 2016, p. 4)

• Development plan for the Mekong River Delta by 2030

The Mekong River Delta (MRD) is the first region-based development plan adopted in accordance with the Law on Planning, and will also be an important basis for localities in the MRD to develop synchronous and unified provincial planning. The region has a particularly vital position

as it is the largest hub of rice, fruit, and seafood in Viet Nam. However, its per capita income remains lower than the national average. The development plan targets to full tap the potential and strengths of the region and expand links between the region and Ho Chi Minh City – the country’s biggest economic engine – and other localities in the Southeast region. The plan focuses on infrastructure development, which is important for the transformation of development models, focusing on transport, energy, clean water supply, irrigation and social infrastructure (Prime Minister, 2022). The goal is that by 2030, the MRD will become a sustainable, dynamic and highly efficient agricultural economic center of the country, region and the world. The plan, addionally, points out the need for the development of marine economy, tourism economy, strengthening intra- regional, inter-regional, domestic and international connections (Huong Giang, 2023).

Figure 2. The Infographics of Overview of the Development Plan for Mekong Delta Region by 2030

(Huong Giang, 2023) June 17, 2022 9:42 PM GMT+7

Together with the regional MDR Development Plan, the Prime Minister has also approved a master plan for tourism development in the region until 2020 with a vision to 2030. This plan aims to develop tourism in line with the region’s potential and advantages, affirm the region’s position in Viet Nam’s tourism map and enhance the position and role of the regional tourism development to enable to improve the lives of locals and promote the region to the country and the world. The objective of this master plan is to hope welcome 34 million tourists, including 3.5 million foreigners by 2020 and 52 million arrivals with 6.5 million foreigners by 2030. The region targets total revenue of 25 trillion VND (1.12 billion USD) by 2020 and 111 trillion VND (5 billion USD) by 2030. To achieve those goals, the region will focus on developing exciting tourism products and national tourism areas. For tourism products, the region will exploit advantages to develop typical, appealing and highly competitive tourism products like experiencing life on rivers, ecological tourism, tours to cultural heritages, sea-island resort tourism, and entertainment. The region’s tourism products also include community tourism, rural tourism, tours to historic- revolutionary sites, and meetings, incentives, conventions, and exhibitions/events (MICE) tourism. Additionally, its regional tourism products will further focus on developing international markets, particularly Western Europe, North America, and East Asia.

The life on a section of a river in Mekong Delta (Source: VNA)

Another major focus will be developing five national tourism areas, namely Thoi Son in Long Lan Quy Phung Island in the Tien River between Tien Giang and Ben Tre provinces, Phu Quoc Island in Kien Giang Province, Nam Can – Mui Ca Mau in Ca Mau Province, Tram Chim – Lang Sen in Long An and Dong Thap provinces and Nui Sam in An Giang Province. It also focuses on seven tourist sites – the Happy Land entertainment complex in Long An Province, Cu Lao Ong Ho in An Giang Province, the Commemorative Site for the Southern Don Ca Tai Tu and Cao Van Lau musician in Bac Lieu Province, Ninh Kieu Wharf in Can Tho City, Ha Tien Town in Kien Giang

Province, Van Thanh Mieu in Vinh Long Province and Ao Ba Om in Tra Vinh Province. Moreover, the plan targets to develop Can Tho City and Phu Quoc Island into tourism centres for the region and develop My Tho City in Tien Giang Province into a tourism centre of the region’s eastern tourism zone. Based on the network of inter-regional tours, topic-based tours like forest, sea, Dong Thap Muoi wetland, U Minh, and Nam Can and rural exploration ecological tours will be created.

The region will also develop national and international tourism tours in collaboration with HCM City, Can Tho city, Ca Mau like the south coastal corridor route (Thailand – Cambodia – Rach Gia – Ca Mau) and tours via international border gates Ha Tien, Tinh Bien in An Giang Province, Dinh Ba, Thuong Phuoc, in Dong Thap, and Binh Hiep in Long An. There will also be sea routes via ports in Can Tho and Phu Quoc and waterway routes on Tien and Hau Rivers to Phnom Penh and Seam Reap in Cambodia. International air tourism will be increased as well by upgrading and expanding Can Tho and Phu Quoc international airports (Vietnamtourism, 2016).

• An Giang Province

An Giang Province, one of the thirteen provinces of the MRD region, is located in the west of the MRD between the Tien River and Hau River (belonging to the Mekong River) and shares a 95- km border with Cambodia. Therefore, the socioeconomic development strategy of An Giang province in general and its tourism development strategy toward 2030 can not be separated with the regional development plan by 2030 that is mentioned above. Actually, in 2017, the Vice Chairman of An Giang province, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Binh, in 2017 stated that the province issued a resolution on tourism development strategy in 2020-2025 that the province identifies four key tourism types: spiritual tourism, eco-resort tourism, eco-water tourism and cultural-heritage tourism (VNA, 2017). With the natural conditions endowed for An Giang province, it has a few midland areas and low mountains, with two main types of topography: midland areas and low mountains. The low mountains are Bay Nui (Seven Mountains) in Tinh Bien and Tri Ton districts. Vinh Te Tunnel runs along with the province’s border in the west, which connects from Chau Doc to Ha Tien. Its main ethnic groups consist of the Kinh (Vietnamese), Khmer, Cham, and Hoa (Chinese). These four ethnic groups are living harmoniously together, thereby creating rich and diverse national cultural values. This province also has many historical and cultural relics and scenic spots. It has a famous mother-worshiping belief throughout the country, attracting millions of visitors every year to worship and offer thanksgiving. Especially, An Giang has a large area of majesty and mystery called ‘That Son area’ in Sino-Vietnamese and ‘Seven Mountains area (Vùng Bảy Núi) in Vietnamese. Additionally, An Giang has the cultural relics of Oc Eo – Ba The.

Numerous archaeologists have considered this area used to be a bustling commercial sea port with many major architectural monuments traced back to the 1^st century, which means that it had ever been an economically and culturally prosperous area. Besides, this province has famous sites and attractions, including An Giang Museum in Long Xuyen, Ba Chua Xu (Lady God Pagoda) Pagoda at Sam Mountain in Chau Doc, and Cam Mountain in Tịnh Bien district, Tuc Dup Hill, Grottoes network of Thuy Dai Son (Water Mountain), Anh Vu Son (Parrot Mountain). There are many famous festivals in An Giang province such as Lady God Festival, Chol Chnam Thomay, Dolta festival and Ox-racing (Vietnam Tourism, 2023). Particularly, An Giang is the hometown of the late President Ton Duc Thang with his Memorial House area located in My Hoa Hung Village on Mr. Tiger Islet (Cù lao Ông Hổ) in the middle of the Hau River. Huynh Thanh Tien and his co- workers considered An Giang province as a tiny model of ASEAN community in the Mekong Delta region due to its diversity of religions and ethnic groups living together on the land bestowed by nature in the Mekong Delta (Huynh Thanh Tien, Nguyen Huu Tri, Trinh Phuoc Nguyen., 2018). The province is located in a monsoon tropical climate where the annual average temperature varies between 26 and 28°C, with the two distint seasons, including the dry season from December to April, and the rainy season from May to November. Floods often occur from the mid-August to the mid- November annually. This province is also criss-crossed by many rivers and canals, making a convenient water transport system. The Mekong River runs through An Giang province and devides it with two tributaries, the Tien River and the Hau River, delivering millions of cubic meters of alluvium annually to the province and helping form several islets which are extremely fertile and covered with lush green vegetation (Vietnam Tourism, 2023). Its favourably natural- endowed and man-made conditions have been creating for the province to develop its tourism sustainably in the future.

Photo of Long Xuyen city, An Giang Province from (Vietnam Tourism, 2023)

• Tourism types in An Giang province

Figure 3. An Giang Tourism Map (Thám Hiểm MeKong (Mekong Discovery), 2023)

There were over eight million tourists coming for visiting An Giang province in 2017. However, the number of long-stay tourists and those using the local tourist services were still limited though the annual festival of Ba Chua Xu in Sam Mountain has been well-known for ages. Over the years, the number of travelers to An Giang province varies significantly among seasons. For instance, there are too many tourists on special occasions while there are only few in other times of the year (Nguyen Thanh Long, 2018). Thái Hà listed out the available types of tourism in An Giang province that include spiritual tourism, cultural tourism, eco-tourism, community-based tourism, urban tourism (Thái Hà, 2019) .

• Spiritual tourism

When it comes to An Giang, most people think of Ba Chua Xu Temple on Sam mountain, Tay An pagoda, Hang pagoda in Sam Mountain National Tourist Area and the mysterious That Son region, etc. known by people in the Mekong Delta. Every year, the province welcomes a large number of domestic and foreign tourists to come here. With the spiritual beliefs of the locals in particular, but also of tourists in general, this will certainly attract a large number of tourists from many places to the area.

• Cultural tourism

An Giang province is considered a multi-colored culture, because it is a place where a large number of ethnic minorities such as Kinh, Khmer, Cham and Hoa together with the different cultures of

each ethnic group created, bringing excitement and attraction to tourists. Coming to visit here, tourists can come and see cultural and historical relics, learn about the local cultural identities and learn about the special features at Oc Eo cultural space, Sap Mountain tourist site in Thoai Son District

• Eco-tourism

An Giang with Tra Su Melaleuca forests in Tinh Bien district, Co To Valley in Co To Mountain, Tri Ton district, Bung Binh Thien, etc. will certainly be a place with great potential for developing these types of eco-tourism. Coming here, visitors can immerse themselves in nature, experience ecology at fruit gardens. Particularly, Long Xuyen Floating Market cannot be missed with interesting different experiences with a vivid picture of vibrant activities and most closely associated with the daily life of the people here.

• Community-based tourism

An Giang is a land of natural favor, endowed with many beautiful landscapes associated with the cultural diversity of ethnic groups. This is the best condition for developing tourism in general and community tourism in particular. Coming here, tourists can experience traveling with local people cooking, sleeping together, participating in gardening activities, weaving brocade, making jaggery, catching fish with local people. here. These are the points that make tourists wonder that the people bring.

• Urban Tourism

Focus on investment and call for investment in the entertainment area of Long Xuyen city and Chau Doc city. To likely to achieve the set goals, An Giang province has issued the action program for tourism infrastructure development focusing on transport infrastructure, telecommunications infrastructure, human resource training, advertising, promoting brand images, and helping integrate with the development of the world. The development of An Giang’s outstanding tourism types not only improves the lives of local people, but also serves as a driving force to promote the planning of developing corresponding infrastructure with close linkages in the region (Thái Hà, 2019).

(Nguyen Thanh Long, 2018)

• The Seven Mountain and its ecosystem of herbal medicinal plants

Bảy Núi (Chữ Nôm: 罷𡶀, seven mountains), also known by the Sino-Vietnamese version Thất Sơn (Vietnamese: [tʰə́k ʂəːŋ], Chữ Hán: 七山), is a range of small mountains located in the Tri Tôn and Tịnh Biên districts in Vietnam‘s An Giang Province, very close to the Cambodian border. The 710-metre Thiên Cấm Sơn (the Cấm Mountains) is the highest among the mountainous region of Thất Sơn and it is the highest peak in the whole Mekong Delta region. Endowed with such spectacular mountainous terrain, Núi Cấm is known as the “Đà Lạt of the Mekong Delta”. The common names of the seven mountains in the Thất Sơn range are:

• Núi Cấm (Thiên Cẩm Sơn) “Forbidden Mountain”. The mountain is 716 meters in height and 7,500 meters in length. Cam mountain is the longest mountain in the Seven Mountains. It is the most sacred mountain in the Seven Mountains region. Cam mountain had built a path to the top of the mountain.
• Núi Dài Năm Giếng (Ngũ Hồ Sơn) “Long Five Wells Mountain” – The mountain is ranked as the fourth highest in the Seven Mountains, 265 meters above sea level in height. The West faces An Phu district. The physical features of the mountain are really rugged. However, from the top of the mountain, there is a panoramic view of Nha Bang town, and visitors also can see daily activities of Nha Bang residents
• Núi Cô Tô (Phụng Hoàng Sơn) – Cô Tô mountain is located in Tri ton district, An Giang province. The mountain is the third longest mountain in the range of Seven mountain with 5,800 meters in length and 614 meters in height. There are many visitors who enjoy walking

on top of the mountain because of its length. The top of the mountain offers a view of a large lake. At twilight, especially, visitors and residents of Tri Ton enjoy the feeling of the fresh air.

• Núi Dài (Ngọa Long Sơn) “Long Mountain” – The mountain is the longest mountain in the Seven mountain, 8,000 meters in length. It is 580 meters in height. The mountain is 3 kilometers away from the central Ba Chuc which belongs to Chi Ton district. The mountain is the combination of many hard rocks such as volcanic rocks, granite rocks, Jurassic rocks.
• Núi Tượng (Liên Hoa Sơn) “Statue Mountain” – The mountain is located in the central Ba Chuc village. The mountain is 600 meters in length and 145 meters in height. It is the second smallest mountain in the Seven Mountains. Visitors can easily get lost on the way to the top of the mountain because of the winding road. Also, in the past, many illegal lumberjacks felled trees, so the trees had overgrown to fill the path.
• Núi Két (Anh Vũ Sơn) “Parrot Mountain” – The mountain is 225 meters in height with 1,100 meters in length, located 2,5 kilometers away from Nha Bang street-market. The path to the top of the mountain is uncultivated because it is a developing area, so it does not attract that many pedestrians, comparing to the other mountains. The scenery of the forest mountain still looks primitive, and it is very beautiful and unspoiled.
• Núi Nước (Thủy Đài Sơn) “Water Mountain” – This mountain is located about 2 kilometers in Ba Chuc town. Water Mountain is the smallest and lowest mountain of Seven Mountain with only 20 meters in height. The mountain is called by Water Mountain, that is because in the flood season, the mountain is often submerged in water. In the past, the mountain has been covered by water in the flood season, so the water pressure created a large force impact a large area of the mountain, so the rock on the mountain became very smooth and sparkling (Nguyễn Hoài Bảo, 2015).

The Seven Mountains (Bảy Núi) belongs to the administrative boundaries of Tri Ton District and Tinh Bien District in An Giang province. It is located in the tropical monsoon and sub-equatorial climate with a diverse terrain (hills and plains) and its flora is also in a wide diversity of various species of medicinal plants. Forest vegetables in An Giang has 815 species belonging to 501 genera of 145 families, with 415 species of plants likely to be used as medicine. The Seven Mountains has many ethnic minority communities such as Khmer, Cham, Chinese, etc., of which the Khmer are the largest.

The resources of medicinal plants of the Khmer ethnic people in the area of the Seven Mountains are very diverse, with 356 species of higher plants belonging to 270 genera of 101 families in 3 branches, of which 22 species have been mostly used by the Khmer people here. most a large number of people. There are 8 rare species of plants listed in the Red Book of Vietnam in 2007 and Decree 32/CP/2006, including trầm hương (agarwood), hà thủ ô đỏ (fallopia multiflora),

kì nam (hydnophytum formicarum), giáng hương (pterocarpus macrocarpus kurz), bình vôi trắng hay cây ngãi tượng (Stephania glabra), cà na (canarium), thạch hộc (dendrobium officinale), mặc nưa (diospyros mollis). Medicinal plants are distributed in 6 different habitats, but the most diverse is in home gardens and fruit orchards with 246 species, accounting for 69.10% of species. The main life form of medicinal plants is herbaceous with 147 species, accounting for 41.29%. The obtained medicinal plants can prevent and treat 21 groups of diseases (Hoang Nam, 2022).

The Seven Mountains (photo gody.vn) (Hoang Nam, 2022)	Cam Mountain (Núi Cấm) (Minh Ngoc, 2022)

• Recommendations for developing tourism and herbal medicine tourism in An Giang

Based on Vietnam tourism development strategy until 2020 and vision 2030 approved by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in Decision 2473/QĐ-TTg dated December 30, 2011, the province has set a key task for its tourism development in the phase of 2020-2030 as follows:

• To turn An Giang tourism into a destination of “convergence-discovery-concentricity-

spreading” (hội tụ-khám phá-đồng tâm-lan tỏa) in the region and the whole nation.

• To strengthen the state management of security and order in tourist zones and sites to handle negative behaviors of pinching, chasing, cheating, slashing tourists.
• To implement projects on restoration and embellishment of relics, actively protect tourism resources; direct all levels, branches and localities, enterprises and communities to well perform environmental management in tourist zones and sites; guide localities, communities and businesses to implement the code of civilized behavior in tourism.
• To continue to complete the transport infrastructure system connecting to tourist areas

and attractions, allocating capital sources for tourism infrastructure development.

• To promote the application of information technology in management and promotion of An Giang tourism image through websites and smartphones.
• To list out key projects of the province with calls for investment and socialization to invest into entertainment services, restaurants, hotels, shopping malls, and to strengthen support for local businesses.

• To improve administrative procedures, remove difficulties in mechanisms and policies to rapidly put approved projects into operation.
• To speed up the completion of infrastructure works at Sam mountain, Cam mountain, Soai So lake tourist area in order to develop new and diversified tourism products.
• To build two wharfs with many piers in Long Xuyen city and Chau Doc city to attract more tourists who enjoy water tourism.
• To implement tourism devlopment programs associated with agriculture to create new agri-tourism with various tourism products.
• To increase the quality of tourism associated with traditional cultural festivals, beliefs, religions and ethnic groups such as the festival of Ba Chua Xu at Sam Mountain; Donta Festival, Seven Mountains bull racing festival, Chol-chhnam-thmay festival of the Khmner people; Bung Binh Thien cultural festival – Ramadan fasting month, Roya Haji New Year of the Cham ethnic group in An Phu district…
• To coordinate with local and national tourism businesses and associations to organize

delegations to promote An Giang tourism domestically and internationally; to promote linkages between provinces in the key economic regions of the Mekong Delta and big cities like Ho Chi Minh city, Da Nang City and Ha Noi city.

• To actively implement the human resource training program for 1,800 employees in the two sectors of tourism and agriculture, contributing to raising awareness and skills in tourism for the society.
• Researching policies to support models: developing high-tech agri-tourism and

traditional agriculture associated with traditional craft villages; developing eco-tourism based on the ecosystem of canals, rivers, mountains, forests and countrysides.

• Diversify tourism products associated with the local people’s cultural life; enhance the

quality of tourism associated with historical and cultural relics; expand and exploit tours to learn about the local residents’ cultural life and their traditional craft villages; particularly enjoy the typical cultural forms of the ethnic groups such as Khmer Yike singing and dancing drums, singing folk songs, dancing Paranung drums, and playing Saranai trumpets of the Cham people…; link tourism with trade fairs in bordering areas; promote the development of food tourism with specialty shopping and of health- wellness tourism together with exploring the medicinal plants in the Seven Mountains.

Additionally, An Giang is the only province in the MRD region embracing the Seven Mountains area with many naturally magnificient and undiscovered sceneries and a wide range of herbal medicine plants, together with the favorable climate conditions for relaxation. Therefore, it is essential for the provincial authorities to find ways to mobilize all financial resources to build and turn the Seven Mountains area as a paradise of herbal medicine tourist resort that meets the current trends of green-nature, health and wellness tourism. By doing so, the local government of An Giang province needs to:

• Expand and develop the square area of growing herbal medicines plants and making it become attractive and beautiful tourist sites.
• Build an appropriate model of herbal medincine tourism created by Neda Torabi Farsania, Hossein Zeinali, and Maedeh Moaiednia (2016) (see Figure 1 on page 4).

Figure 3. Business Model development for “the Herbal Tourism Village” (Wibawa, B. M.; Baihaqi, I.; Hakim, M. S.; Kunaifi, A.; Anityasari, M., 2016)

• Call for domestic and foreign tourism businesses to study and design the business model

development for “The Herbal Tourism Village” in Cam Mountain in the Seven Mountain Area – known as the Đà Lạt of the Mekong River Delta like the model below designed by Wibawa, Baihaqui, Kunaifi and Anityasari (2016).

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[1] Senior English Lecturer, Faculty of Foreign Languages, An Giang University, VNU-HCM,

Email: httien@agu.edu.vn ; httien@vnuhcm@edu.vn  

[2] Lecturer Faculty of Information Technology, and Staff of Examination and Quality Assurance Office; An Giang University, VNU-HCM; email: htviet@agu.edu.vn

3 Senior English Lecturer, M.A. in Tesol, Faculty of Foreign Languages, An Giang University, VNU-HCM

[4] Vice Dean of Faculty of Economics and Adminstration, An Giang University, VNU-HCM; email: tthien@agu.edu.vn