YANGONbingotour, June 22 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar welcomed 520,000 foreign tourists in the first five months of 2024, the state-run daily Myanma Alinn, citing the Central Committee on National Tourism Development, reported on Saturdaybingotour.

The report quoted General Mya Tun Oo, chairman of the Central Committee on National Tourism Development, as saying that this year's foreign tourist arrivals were up compared to the over 310,000 foreign tourists who visited the country in the same period last year.

Mya Tun Oo also emphasized the need to maintain this increase and strive to meet the number of tourists registered before the COVID-19 outbreak.

Additionally, he highlighted the importance of using digital technology to explore markets, attract more foreign tourists, promote online cashless payments and adopt long-term strategies to facilitate business and tourism growth.

In 2023, 1.28 million foreign tourists visited Myanmar, official figures showed.■