Con Cuong towards Western Nghe An tourist town

(Baonghean) -DComrade Kha Thi Tim - Vice Chairman of Con Cuong District People's Committee answered an interview with Nghe An Newspaper about the issue of building Con Cuong into a tourist town in the Western region of Nghe An.

Reporter:Located in the Southwest of Nghe An, Con Cuong is known as an ancient land with a rich history and culture with many famous relics and landscapes. According to you, is this a favorable condition for Con Cuong to develop tourism?

Comrade Kha Thi Tim:Con Cuong is a fertile land, Con Cuong town has the largest and most beautiful area among the western districts of Nghe An province. The town has Lam River flowing through it, National Highway 7A, mountains and forests located in the buffer zone of Pu Mat National Park. This is a stopover for tourists on the Vinh - Ky Son route or the Hanoi - Nam Can Border Gate route.

Khe Kem Waterfall is a tourist destination. Photo: Sy Minh.

In the total area of ​​the district, there are 128,000 hectares of forest located in Pu Mat National Park and Pu Huong Nature Reserve. This is the largest flora and fauna carpet in Asia, with more than 1,200 rare plant species, hundreds of forest animal species, including rare species such as: Saola, striped tiger, elephant, Truong Son large-antlered muntjac, red-tailed wolf... which are precious animals listed in the world red book, hundreds of fish species, bat species, beautiful butterflies.

In the primeval forest, there are also many beautiful waterfalls such as: Kem waterfall, Moc stream and many interesting caves: Tham Om cave, Tham Nang Man, Ong Trang cave, Ma Nhai stele, Dao Nguyen cave, where the historic Tra Lan citadel is located... attracting tourists. The Con Cuong river and stream system with more than 20,000 hectares of water surface area, creates a rich source of aquatic products, of which the famous are Giang river cool fish, Ca river catfish, and Con Cuong skewer fish, which are famous delicacies of the Indochina region. The above mentioned geographical location and beautiful landscape have created Con Cuong a strong point for eco-tourism and a large, rich source of resources.

The gathering of 7 ethnic groups creates a unique cultural picture, imbued with the traditional identities of indigenous peoples such as Thai, Dan Lai, Kho Mu... and the unique culture of Can wine with the gentle and graceful Lam Vong dance of the highland girls. All of the above valuable assets are gradually becoming reality, invaluable resources, important conditions, to build Con Cuong into the economic - cultural center of the Southwest of Nghe An.

Con Cuong Town

Reporter:To exploit that tourism potential, what specific measures has the district taken in the past, sir?

Comrade Kha Thi Tim:The above potential is the strength for Con Cuong tourism to build many types of eco-cultural tourism such as: walking garden tour - Trung Chinh - Kem Waterfall; Con Cuong town tour - Pha Lai; Khe Choang adventure tour - Pu Mat peak; visit Dan Lai ethnic group, visit Yen Thanh brocade weaving village...

The province has also determined to build Con Cuong into a tourist town, along with announcing the planning of Khe Kem waterfall tourist area; Pha Lai and is calling for domestic and foreign investors to invest in construction. The Government alone has invested 300 billion VND, including investment in eco-tourism on many routes: From Eo Vuc Bong, Bong Khe commune to Mon Son, 19 km long, is an attractive green tourist route.

On the district side, since 2014, the district has issued the Project "Preserving and promoting the cultural heritage values ​​of ethnic groups in Con Cuong district"; Project "Developing tourism in Con Cuong district in the period of 2013 - 2020". Forming brocade weaving cooperatives, villages with traditional crafts of ethnic minorities to produce goods and serve tourism such as: Mon Son brocade cooperative, Hai Van brocade cooperative, Chi Khe commune, Hong Thin cooperative (brocade craft village of Yen Thanh - Luc Da).

Cruise on Giang River. Photo: PV

Building community tourism spots in Nua village (Yen Khe commune), Yen Thanh village (Luc Da commune), Xieng village (Mon Son commune) to attract domestic and foreign visitors to explore. Forming tours such as: Pu Mat National Park Center to Khe Kem waterfall; Pu Mat National Park to Sang Le forest; Ban Ve Hydropower Plant in Tuong Duong district; Pu Mat National Park to Giang River - Khe Khang; Mon Son - Luc Da festival cultural tourism tour. In the district, there are 6 accommodation facilities, 75 rooms serving tourists. Currently, Muong Thanh Group is investing in building the first luxury hotel in the district, expected to be put into use at the end of September 2016, creating a highlight in terms of accommodation for Con Cuong district town.

However, besides the advantages and potentials, Con Cuong district also faces many difficulties in traffic, it can be seen that all trade with the outside is mainly through National Highway 7A. The district is located in an area with complex terrain and high slopes, so the construction, upgrading or building of infrastructure items still faces obstacles. The district is far from the central city, traffic is limited, so it cannot attract many tourists. This is also the reason why investors are reluctant to invest.

Plum blossom season in Con Cuong

Reporter:With the available potential for tourism, this will be the focus in the socio-economic development of the district in the coming years?

Comrade Kha Thi Tim:The District Party Committee, People's Council, and People's Committee have determined that with the available tourism potential, this will be a key industry in the overall socio-economic development of the district in the coming years. Therefore, the specific direction in the coming time of the district is to become a tourist town. Therefore, Con Cuong will be a tourist town with the goal of developing types of tourism such as: eco-tourism; historical tourism, ethnic culture, traditional festivals; craft village tourism associated with community tourism.

Therefore, the district will strongly invest in developing commercial services such as: Trading, goods trading, transportation... to serve the needs of tourism development. Encourage organizations and individuals to expand tourism services; entertainment centers to meet the needs of tourists. Organize tourist routes associated with the province's tourism with Con Cuong, Laos, Thailand through Nam Can and Thanh Thuy international border gates. Connect the Vinh - Cua Lo - Con Cuong - Plain of Jars - Luang Prabang tourist routes...

By 2020, Con Cuong strives to serve 200,000 tourists, including 10,000 - 15,000 international tourists; revenue from tourism services reaches over 20 billion VND. Hopefully, in the coming years, with the integration and development mechanism, with available potential, Con Cuong will become an attractive tourist destination, attracting a large number of domestic and foreign tourists; Con Cuong will go hand in hand with Cua Lo, Nam Dan, Vinh City... to contribute to the development of the "smokeless industry" of the province.

Reporter:Thank you for this discussion, comrade.

Thanh Hien

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