Siem Reap is well-positioned to leverage the target audience of short-haul budget travelers and young people from countries such as China, India, Japan and South Korea who are the target audience of a new “Visit Southeast Asia” campaign announced by Asean tourism ministers this month. The Straits Times reported: “Southeast Asian nations are looking to each other for help to combat the decline in the number of overseas tourists … amid the global financial crisis.” The newspaper said Asean tourism ministers collectively warned of a “difficult” and “challenging” year ahead at a press conference in Hanoi as part of the Asean Tourism Forum. Tourism officials from China, India, Japan and South Korea also attended. The Straits Times reports: “Although complete data for last year is not available for all the 10 member nations, Asean Secretary General Dr Surin Pitsuwan said, “We are going to take quite a big hit” ”In 2007, the 10 nations received a total of 58 million visitors who spent about US$1.4 trillion. That figure is about five percent of their combined gross domestic product. Although numbers for the first few months of Last year showed growth, Surin said the sector suffered in the last quarter when the financial crisis hit. ”With half the annual number of tourists originating from within Asean, it was natural to focus on the region to bolster demand,” he said. Surin cautioned that the measures may soften the blow dealt by the decline in long-haul travelers, but they will not be able to make up for the expected drop in revenue.