Mongolia to hold cultural event to attract more tourists

Mongolia will hold a cultural event called "Khuree Tsam-Danshig Naadam" beginning Saturday outside the capital city Ulan Bator in an effort to boost the tourism sector, the city said on Tuesday.

The festival will present two unique events, namely the ritual Tsam mask dance and naadam, or "three manly games."

"The festival is one of the main tourism events in Mongolia. The government of Mongolia has been paying close attention to the development of the tourism sector in a bid to stimulate its economic growth," Tsend Enkhtuvshin, deputy head of Ulan Bator's tourism department, told Xinhua.

"Our country aims to raise the tourism industry's contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) to 10 percent in the coming years," Enkhtuvshin noted.

"To achieve this goal, it is important to attract more Chinese tourists. China is the most important country for Mongolia's tourism. The Chinese are spending far more than anyone else," Enkhtuvshin said.

Currently, tourism accounts for less than five percent of Mongolia's GDP.

According to the official data released by Mongolia's Environment and Tourism Ministry, Mongolia received over 470,000 overseas tourists in 2017, a 16 percent rise year on year, and earned over 400 million dollars, up 20 percent from the previous year.

In particular, roughly 144,000 Chinese tourists visited Mongolia in 2017, up eight percent from the previous year.

The Mongolian government has set a goal of hosting one million foreign tourists and earning one billion U.S. dollars from tourism in 2020.