Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob said that he and all transport state agencies would convene on July 30 to finalise policy details.

He has already instructed the state agencies to within one month conclude a study of how the burden of transport costs could be reduced for people.

He assured that the reduction of overall transport fares would not affect the state budget or the concession contracts of the existing operators. The ministry will not only lower fares for the mass transit system, but also all other fares for means of transport, he said.

He added that the government might within this year run a pilot project lowering the fares of the Bang Yai-Tao Poon Purple Line and the Airport Rail Link route. The ministry needs to first negotiate with all related parties before making a final decision.

The burgeoning metropolitan area with 13 million inhabitants is facing problems caused by rapid urban development and is struggling with climate-related problems, said Le Thanh Phong, head of the Investment and Trade Promotion Centre’s investment promotion division.

“The demand for urban infrastructure is forecast to grow as a result of the rapid urbanisation,” he told the Infrastructure Vietnam Summit that wrapped up on July 26 in HCM City. “Traffic problems and flooding have hindered social and economic development.”

The city is soliciting investment of $53 billion (Bt1.6 trillion) in 210 projects, mostly in infrastructure, according to the official.

The city requires $42 billion for 85 transport infrastructure projects, including 55 roads and bridges, seven for waterway transport, eight in railways, and 15 road works.

It also needs $4.9 billion for 36 urban technical infrastructure projects, including drainage systems and wastewater treatment plants.

It plans to develop a satellite city in four areas to help reduce population pressure and stress on infrastructure in the city centre.

Nguyen Quoc Hien, director of the project preparation investment unit under the Management Authority for Urban Railways, said as a metro and an economic hub HCM City urgently needed to build an urban railway system.

Under a master plan approved by the government, the city would develop an urban railway system with a length of 220 kilometres at a cost of $26 billion, including eight metro lines, one tramway line and two monorail lines, he said. “The 220km urban railway system is modest compared to the city’s rapid economic growth and urbanisation.”

“Three of the metro lines have received funding commitments but they account for only 10 per cent of the total cost and the remaining 90 per cent investment has yet to be tied up,” he said.

KPMG Legal Limited director Tran Duy Binh said lengthy procedures and multiple approvals were among the key irritants faced by foreign investors.

It was also difficult and time-consuming to find an appropriate local partner, he added.

As of last month investors from 106 countries and territories had invested more than $45 billion in numerous sectors in the city.

Commuters can enjoy a free ride on the section between Wat Mangkorn and Tha Phra from July 29 until September 28 from 10am to 4pm.

The new platform aims to deliver a seamless customer journey and is expected to be introduced early next year.

Once implemented, Star Alliance customers who opt-in to biometrics will have a seamless and hands-free passenger experience, allowing them to pass through curb-to-gate touchpoints within airports, such as check-in kiosks, bag-drop, lounges, and boarding gates, which traditionally require both a passport and boarding pass, by using a secure identity management solution featuring facial recognition technology.

Moreover, the platform will help airports and the Star Alliance member airlines to increase operational efficiency.

The service will be available to customers who are enrolled in one of the Star Alliance frequent flyer programmes and who have authorised the use of their biometric data.

Customers will have the option to enroll in the new platform via their smartphones. They only need to enroll once and can then use their biometrics data multiple times at biometrics touchpoints of any participating airport whenever they travel with a Star Alliance member airline.

Personal data, such as photo and other identification details, are encrypted and safely stored within the platform. From the outset, the system has been designed in compliance with applicable data protection laws making use of the latest facial recognition technology. Personal data will only be processed with the consent of the passenger. Passengers may be required to show their passport during security and immigration procedures.

“In NEC, we have found a strong partner who shares our vision of a seamless travel experience for air travellers. At Star Alliance we are committed to making the customer journey better, and this strategic partnership with NEC will help us make the way from curb to gate to aircraft a much simpler, yet innovative experience for our customers,” said Jeffrey Goh, chief executive of Star Alliance.

Takashi Niino, President and CEO of NEC Corporation, added: “NEC is pleased to join forces with Star Alliance to bring an improved cross terminal customer experience. Facial recognition is truly revolutionising the airline industry and making flying more enjoyable, just as it was always intended. In support of this partnership, similar to our implementations in United States, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan, NEC will mobilise its global resources and provide local assistance to each of the member airlines to leverage this secure, interoperable platform and rapidly bring our common vision to reality.”

Star Alliance and NEC aim to introduce the first biometric solution at a Star Alliance airport hub by the first quarter of 2020.

The 2018 Vietnam Tourism Annual Report said last year there were more than 4.9 million visitors from China, or 32 per cent of all foreign arrivals.

Without saying how much various nationals spent per day on average, the report merely said spending by Chinese was estimated at VND94.7 trillion (US$4 billion), or 24.7 per cent of total tourism revenues.

A Chinese tourist thus spent VND19 million ($818) on average during their visit while South Koreans, who made up the second largest number of visitors, spent VND26.3 million ($1,100) each.

There were 3.4 million South Koreans, or 22.5 per cent of all international arrivals, and they spent an estimated VND92 trillion ($3.96 billion), or 24 per cent of total tourism revenues.

The report said tourists from Australia, Russia and the US spent a lot of money on average and had lengthy stays.

Australian tourists accounted for the highest average spending of VND36.6 million ($1,500), followed by Russians with VND33.9 million ($1,460) and Americans with VND32.4 million ($1,390).

Last year Vietnam received 15.49 million foreign visitors, a year-on-year increase of 19.9 per cent.

The country’s top ten source markets were China, South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, the US, Russia, Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, and the UK, which accounted for 83 per cent of all arrivals and 78 per cent of tourism revenues.

Last year tourism revenues were worth more than VND637 trillion ($27.44 billion) with 60.1 per cent coming from international tourists and the rest from domestic tourists.

In the first half of this year Asia remained the largest source market for the tourism sector, accounting for 77 per cent of foreign arrivals in Vietnam, according to the General Statistics Office.

Tourists from Europe and the US accounted for 14 per cent and 6 per cent respectively.

The number of international visitors totalled 8.5 million, up 7.5 per cent year-on-year. —VNS