French experts help develop Sa Pa tourism site

Lao Cai (VNA) - 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.-Enditem