THE IMPACT OF ASEAN ON TOURISM

The tourism sector, which has high inter-industry and cross-country linkages, is well suited to be the leading sector to accelerate regional economic growth and integration. International and domestic tourism are leading economic activities in the world today. Tourism has been known to generate goods and services directly and indirectly, attract foreign currency, stimulate employment, and provide opportunities for investment. ASEAN Member Countries aim to establish an integrated ASEAN Tourism Investment Zone (ATIZ) as a cornerstone of its regional tourism investment thrust. The regional tourism investment thrust involves identifying tourism areas that are attractive for joint investment promotion, developing joint action programs to overcome impediments and attract investors, and formulating strategies to promote ASEAN as a single tourism investment destination. The ultimate goal is to achieve full integration of the tourism sector across all ASEAN Member Countries through liberalization, facilitation and promotion measures, moving towards an ASEAN Economic Community. This paper discusses the role and impact of ASEAN on tourism. This paper also highlights the problems and the new plans and continuous efforts of ASEAN to boost the tourism.