The Mekong Tourism Forum, initially slated to take place next month in Bagan, Myanmar, has been postponed a third time to September 2021.

The decision, made in light of prevailing travel restrictions amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, was agreed upon by the member governments of the Greater Mekong Subregion at the recent 46th GMS Tourism Working Group Meeting, said Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) in a statement. A further postponement is also possible, it added.

The forum was originally planned to be hosted on April 28-29, 2020, before shifting to August 25-26, 2020, and then, February 25-26, 2021.

MTCO said it has been working closely with Myanmar’s Ministry of Hotels and Tourism to plan the annual flagship tourism conference in the Greater Mekong subregion.

The theme remains as Achieving Balanced Tourism, with a focus on rebuilding tourism in the Greater Mekong Subregion.

MTCO executive director, Jens Thraenhart, said: “The theme ‘Achieving Balanced Tourism’ is more relevant than ever because we have a big opportunity to reset tourism and become more sustainable by embracing innovative models such as ‘Doughnut Economics’, and leveraging regional collaboration by creating travel bubbles to accelerate tourism recovery.”

Hla Myint, director of international and regional cooperation at Myanmar’s Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, added: “This will be an important tourism event not only for Myanmar, but for the entire Greater Mekong Subregion, and even ASEAN, as the event will set strategies and collaborations for rebuilding tourism in the region in the most sustainable way.”

The annual Mekong Tourism Forum is hosted by the GMS member countries via a rotational plan, which will shift forward by one year accordingly. Originally, Vietnam was scheduled to be the host of the Mekong Tourism Forum 2021 but is now moved back after Myanmar has hosted the annual flagship event.