Southeast Asian nations like Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Laos are mulling over the introduction of a unified Schengen-like visa which will let tourists travel through these countries without having to issue separate visas for each one. The proposal was initially made by the Prime Minister of Thailand, Sretta Thavisin. The system would be similar to Schengen visa which lets tourists travel between different European countries without the hassle of getting visas for each one.
Southeast Asian Nations Might Get Unified Schengen-Like Visa
According to an article which was recently published by Newsbytes, the program will include nations like Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, etc. The telos behind introducing such a visa program is to make travelling between the countries easier.
Thailand PM Sretta Thavisin is in conversation with the leaders of these countries to see the feasibility of such a visa program. Under this visa, tourists will be allowed visa-free travel in the border-free zone.
The policy is an attempt to attract high-spending tourists as well as long-distance tourists. In Thailand, tourism is one of the major supporters of its economy. Around 20 per cent of all jobs in the country are in the tourist sector.
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Regional Leaders Respond Positively To Thailand’s Proposal
If reports are to go by, the response to the proposal of the policy by regional leaders has been positive. The aim is to protect the country against reduced global demand and slow exports. Thailand and Malaysia generate around $48 billion in tourism revenue alone.
The tourism industry also contributes as much as 12 per cent of the total $500 billion economy of the country. Despite the positive response, however, there might still be a few challenges that might make it difficult to implement such a policy.
First, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations or ASEAN have a history of slow implementation of such multilateral policies. Secondly, some doubts have been expressed about whether Thavisin has the required political sway to pull off such a policy.
Do you think this is a good idea and would make travel between the countries easier? Let us know in the comments section below!
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