More than 200 Vietnamese and foreign delegates made a fact-finding tour of the northern province of Ninh Binh on February 25 to explore its investment opportunities and natural beauty.
They included ambassadors and their wives, embassy staff, and representatives from international organisations and non-governmental organisations in Hanoi and Vietnam travel agency.
Provincial leaders reported that in 2011 Ninh Binh achieved a GDP growth rate of 16.1 percent, with industry and construction accounting for 49 percent of its economic structure, services 36 percent, and agro-forestry-fisheries 15 percent.
The province has great potential for investment and tourism development as it boasts the ruins of the former Hoa Lu capital of the Vietnamese state where three royal Dinh, Early Le and Ly dynasties ruled in the early 10th century, as well as many other national historical and cultural relics.
It is putting the finishing touches to a dossier, seeking a UNESCO title for the Trang An eco-tourism complex as a World Natural Heritage Site.
Moroccan ambassador El Houcine Fardani, head of the diplomatic corps in Vietnam, said the trip helped diplomats and other foreign delegates further understand historical and cultural relics of Ninh Binh.
He expressed hope that UNESCO will soon recognise the Trang An eco-tourism complex as a World Natural Heritage Site in the near future.