Old Town of Lijiang, Southwest China's Yunnan Province Photo: VCG

 
An international forum was recently launched in Lijiang, a city in Southwest China's Yunnan Province. The forum focuses on the development of culture and tourism in Lijiang, which is a key player in the province's tourist industry.

Discussions at the forum centered on strategies to promote local tourism by combining it with culture and innovating traditional tourist products. 

To better connect Yunnan ­Province's tourism landscape with travelers worldwide, the forum invited several ­respected diplomats, including ­Dumitru Braghis, the ambassador of Moldova to China, and Briunny Garabito ­Segura, the ­ambassador of the Dominican ­Republic to China. 

Rosa Carolina Mejía Gómez, the incumbent mayor of Santo Domingo, the capital city of the Dominican Republic, attended the event. She told the Global Times that in the five years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the Dominican Republic in 2018, the two countries have "strengthened exchanges" in the fields of culture and tourism on the basis of equality and mutual benefit. 

The first female mayor of Santo Domingo also noted that the forum could "build a bridge between people in the two countries" that would allow them to exchange perspectives on historical and cultural heritage as well as folk wisdom. 

Wang Hao, the vice governor of ­Yunnan Province, said that Lijiang is a "globally renowned tourist destination" with world-class tourism resources that can strengthen international tourism cooperation. 

Lijiang is rich in both ­natural and ­cultural tourism resources, such as Yulong Snow Mountain, a 75-­kilometer-long mountain range with 13 major snow peaks. 

Additionally, the Old Town of ­Lijiang is an ancient city that was listed as a World Cultural Heritage by the UN's cultural arm ­UNESCO in 1997. 

With such gifts, the city's future tourism development will focus on niche sectors such as sightseeing, vacation, and professional tourism.