Spatial dependence and the tourism-governance nexus in Vietnam: Insights from provincial-level data

Abstract

To simultaneously boost tourism revenue across provinces, the Vietnamese government emphasized strengthening the linkage and cooperation between regions. This study measures the effectiveness of that strategy, which is regional connectivity, or spatial spillover effect, on tourism revenue of 63 provinces in 2019 and 2022. In particular, the government also heavily invests in improving the quality of the administrative apparatus to improve the quality of locals’ lives, one of the factors supporting tourism development for localities. Moreover, Vietnam is converging many factors to become a dynamic and fast-growing economy. Analysis of revenue growth is positively impacted by the economic environment, and government intervention to make adjustments is necessary in terms of industry policy and to fill the research gap for the academic side. Spatial regression models for both 2019 and 2022, with the participation of variables Tourists, Labor force, Enterprises, Income, Public service delivery, Environmental Governance, and E-Governance, all find spatial dependence between provinces, but in the negative direction. The factors that play an important role in raising tourism revenue are Tourists and Enterprises. The significance of variables related to the quality of life improvement policy was not found. In short, government interventions and efforts have not had a positive impact on Vietnam’s tourism industry. Therefore, this study has discussed some policy implications for policymakers to connect the benefits of policies that the government develops for the tourism industry.