French experts help develop Sapa tourism site( 18-10-2010 11:32:14 )
VietNamNet Bridge – The cooperation between northern mountainous Lao Cai Province and Aquitaine, the largest south-western region of France, has yielded initial results.
Since 2002, experts from Aquitaine have helped Lao Cai to complete a development scheme for Sa Pa tourism town, including an architectural design and managerial regulations for the well-known resort locality
Aquitaine has also helped Lao Cai devise a provincial tourism development scheme
for the 2005-2010 period with a vision till 2020.
In addition, the
French experts completed detailed designs for Sa Pa’s tourism resort and museum
and helped print books and launch a website on Sa Pa trekking in both English
and French.
In 2004, 53 botanical species that Aquitaine provided to Lao
Cai, four out of 14 grape species have been selected for long-term growing.
Every year, Aquitaine also sent experts to Lao Cai to directly help in
cultivation technique.
From now until 2012, Aquitaine will continue
helping to expand Sa Pa town and the acreage of grape and other fruit trees from
temperate zone as well as introduce Lao Cai to tourists from France and other EU
member countries and help increase the capacity of the Lao Cai Provincial
Tourism Information Centre’s operation.
Furthermore, Aquitaine will
introduce Lao Cai potential and strengths to its businesses in order to help
them implement foreign direct investment projects in the province, particularly
a project on combining tourism and grape and fruit cultivation and processing in
Sa Pa District and the other on fresh fruit cultivation and processing in Bac Ha
District.
Each year, Aquitaine will provide two or three scholarships in
tourism management, grape cultivation and grape wine processing to Lao Cai
students. It will also send trainees to practise in tourism, hotels, and culture
conservation in the province.
Both sides also agreed to cooperate in
personnel training for managing and exploiting the Hoang Lien National
Park.
(Source:
VNA)