International Tourism Marketing Strategy for Gansu Province, China

• Asia and the Pacific
• 26 Feb 24
• 21 Apr 24

In partnership with: 
Department of Culture and Tourism of Gansu Province, Work Bank

Context:

With support from the World Bank, UN Tourism is collaborating with the Department of Culture and Tourism of Gansu Province to develop a Tourism Human Capital Strategy and an International Tourism Marketing Strategy for the Province within the framework of the Gansu Revitalization and Innovation Project. In April 2024, a first UN Tourism mission took place to Gansu Province to launch the project activities, in particular the tourism human capital component. In June 2024, a first mission to Gansu took place of the expert team developing the International Tourism Marketing Strategy. 

At the outset of the mission in June, a project review meeting took place in Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu Province, with key project stakeholders in the Province to clarify and reach consensus on the expected outputs and the detailed planning of activities for the marketing component. During the first days in Lanzhou, also focus group meetings were held with representatives from the provincial tourism marketing department, other tourism institutes and private sector players to gain valuable insights on the tourism product of Gansu, the current marketing activities undertaken by the Government and the private sector, and the opportunities and challenges to take into account when developing the international tourism marketing strategy for the Province. Subsequently, field inspection visits were undertaken to key tourism sites in Gansu Province to assess the current status and potential for international tourism development and identify opportunities for promoting the tourism products to international markets.

Highlights:

During the focus groups meetings in Gansu, tourism stakeholders stressed the need to have more direct flight connections with key source markets from Asia and highlighted that currently some negotiations are underway for this.

A detailed analysis was made of the presence of Gansu Tourism in international social media, and opportunities were identified for further strengthening this. An online survey was launched to get further inputs from Gansu tourism stakeholders on the status of international tourism marketing and to solicit recommendations for further marketing actions. 

The field inspection visits in the Province confirmed the high potential for international tourism development and promotion, using as top attractions the unique colourful geoparks near Zhangye and Lanzhou, also promoted as rainbow mountains, which nowadays already prominently feature in selected international tourism (social) media. In addition, the marketing strategy will also build on the unique cultural heritage of Gansu, including historic mountain grottoes and Buddha temples spread over the Province, that offers potential to attract select niche markets, in particular visitors from Asian countries with a key interest in these cultural attractions.  

Stay Tuned:

Findings of the meetings and field visits will be used to present an analysis of the current market situation of international tourism in Gansu Province and to develop the international tourism marketing strategy for the Province, including a growth vision, recommendations on targeted source markets and market segments, and proposed marketing goals and actions. 

Upon submission of the draft marketing strategy, an online validation meeting will take place between the main project partners and the expert team, and feedback received will be integrated in the final version of the strategy. Subsequently, an awareness raising seminar will be delivered for selected officers of Gansu Province, focusing on the implementation of the marketing strategy.

Related links

• Gansu Revitalization

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Launch of the Gansu Revitalization and Innovation Project

• Asia and the Pacific
• 13 Apr 24
• 18 Apr 24

 In partnership with:  

World Bank, Department of Culture and Tourism of Gansu Province

Focus

Strengthen and raise tourism standards within the Gansu Province of China through the development of targeted tourism strategies and the organization of capacity-building trainings 

Context:  

Together with the Department of Culture and Tourism of Gansu Province and under the umbrella of the World Bank, UN Tourism will provide Gansu Province stakeholders with technical assistance in the area of tourism development by addressing: (i) rural-urban disparities and a lack of connectivity between “hubs and spokes” that may hinder tourism length-of-stay and spending, and the development of self-sustainable creative tourism products; (ii) deficiencies in the sphere of tourism skills and competencies, primarily regarding the international marketplace; and (iii) limitations in the international awareness of the Gansu Province as a key Silk Road node and passageway. To unleash the province’s competitiveness, a Tourism Human Capital Strategy and an International Marketing Strategy will be prepared for the Province, in addition to a week-long capacity-building training at UN Tourism Headquarters. 

Highlights: 

In April 2024, the first official project management meeting took place, with attending representatives from Gansu Province, the World Bank, UN Tourism and UN Tourism’s expert teams. Apart from kick-starting project implementation, relevant field visit inspections were conducted in Lanzhou, Qin’an and Tianshui, the latter home to the historic Maijishan Grottoes site. Located along one of the historic Silk Road routes, the Maijishan Grottoes, as part of the "Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor" site, were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2014. 

Promotional videos of Gansu Province

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Success Story: Tourism Recovery and Women Empowerment Project in Timor-Leste

• Asia and the Pacific
• 2 May 24
• 8 May 24

In Partnership With:

Ministry of Tourism and Environment Timor-Leste, EIF – Enhanced Integrated Framework, ILO

  

Context:    

The Tourism Recovery and Women Empowerment project in Timor-Leste was successfully completed in 2023.  Project components included a tourism and gender assessment, a Training of Trainers Seminar in for 15 trainers of national training institutes, and the delivery of vocational training programme to 245 women working in the tourism sector on the following topics: food safety and hygiene, guest house management, financial management, digital marketing, and basic supervisory skills. 

Highlights: 

Project experiences and results were presented at the 2nd Regional Conference on the Empowerment of Women in Tourism in Asia and the Pacific that took place in Bali from 2- 4 May 2024. Delegations of several Member States expressed interest in replicating the project in their country and UN Tourism will further liaise with the countries to formulate proposals and identify funding sources, creating good opportunities to expand UN Tourism’s work in the field of Tourism Development and Women Empowerment. 

Subsequently, in the week of 6 May, UN Tourism joined an ILO Team on a project formulation mission to Timor-Leste to identify opportunities to develop a joint proposal for a comprehensive project for the tourism sector, building on activities that both agencies have carried out in the country.   

Stay Tuned: 

Main components of the new project that is being formulated for Timor-Leste include Tourism Master Planning, Statistics, Institutional Strengthening and Human Resources Development. An initial project mission, focusing on strengthening the system of tourism statistics and further mobilizing project support, is expected to take place in the fourth quarter of 2024.  

The new project will build on earlier joint activities by ILO and UN Tourism in employment and decent work in tourism and the improvement of national methods of data collection on employment in the tourism sector.  

Related links:

• Employment and Decent Work in Tourism — ILO-UN Tourism Joint Project —

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Formulation of The Jinan International Tourism Destination Plan

In Partnership With: The Shan Dong Provincial Department of Culture And Tourism, and Shan Dong University

Focus

Provide essential guidance to the stakeholders of Jinan City to successfully develop the tourism sector in line with international standards and best practices. This entails developing a comprehensive tourism strategy tailored to the city's unique characteristics.

Background

Jinan is renowned as the 'Spring City,' distinguished by its 72 artesian springs within the ancient Ming Fu City. Although tourism ranks among the city's top ten industries, Jinan faces the challenge of being predominantly viewed as a brief stopover destination.

In this context, the project was designed to assess and strategize Jinan's tourism potential, aiming to equip stakeholders with the necessary tools to propel a sustainable tourism sector in the city.

Jinan, the capital city of Shandong province, boasts a thriving tourism sector with substantial potential for further development.

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