Government officials and development partners attend a ceremony to launch the website in Vientiane on Thursday. - Photo: Vientiane Times/ANN
VIENTIANE: The tourism industry is expected to become more efficient following the creation of a government-run website that enables tourism operators to apply for a licence online.
The website, www.e-tmd.com, has been set up in conjunction with the improvement of legislation aimed at improving the mechanisms, conditions and environment that facilitate investment and tourism business operations in Laos.
The online licence application site was created in a bid to streamline the process of obtaining a business licence and is part of efforts to improve the quality of public service delivery in tourism, making systems more convenient and transparent in line with government policy.
The official opening ceremony of the website took place at the National Culture Hall on Thursday (Aug 15).
Those attending the ceremony included the Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism, Suanesavanh Vignaket; Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce Manothong Vongsay; Deputy Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Darany Phommavongsa; the Deputy Mayor of Vientiane Phouvong Vongkhamsao, system support representatives, and tourism business operators.
Speaking at the event, Darany said development of the system took place starting in June 2023 and will be fully complete next month.
The Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism has also made changes to the regulations governing tourism to align them with government policies.
The Law on Tourism has been revised, the hotel and guesthouse agreements have been combined into a hotel accommodation agreement, and the agreement on restaurants and entertainment venues has been reformatted into an agreement on restaurants.
Improvements have been made to control activities such as rentals and concessions, and a draft decree has been drawn up on the management of nature-based, cultural and historical tourist attractions.
In addition to the introduction of the online tourism business licence application site, the ministry has improved the statistical system and database, and published a list of risky tourism activities and guidelines on the use of the online tourism business permit system.
Other improvements include the organisation of seminars and training on legislation related to tourism. - Vientiane Times/ANN
