I would bet on tourism

Identifying tourism as the engine we need to drive the Philippine economy is an idea that virtually everyone in the business circle embraces sans reservation. We can’t very well be a manufacturing country like China, not with the excessive cost of power we have in this country. In fact, at the rate we’re going, we will be an importing country altogether, having witnessed how many manufacturing plants and factories have folded up in recent years. The stupendous cost of power and the escalating cost of labor in this country have done them in.

So, it’s tourism that is the way to go for now. People in the travel industry are still highly optimistic about its potentials in the Philippines. According to the Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA), the industry has picked up this year, back from the doldrums in recent years and in spite of the volatile fuel prices and they are confident not only of meeting their targets for the year but surpassing it even. With incomplete figures yet, they have posted a growth for 2011.

Apparently, the new management at the Department of Tourism (DOT) has inspired this confidence and trust, and they are very impressed with the new Secretary Ramon Jimenez who is set to implement the National Tourism Development Plan by next year. With our dismal showing now of just over 2 million inbound tourists coming to the country, the Secretary foresees this swelling up to 6 million, and possibly even 10 million once the development plan is in full swing.

He is set to bring out the DOT slogan, which I understand they have been feverishly working on and may be out by next month, and everyone is awaiting this. The Wow Philippines was actually a catchy one, and I don’t know why we’re dropping it, but if we can still re-invent it, why not? Anyway, even the country’s travel agents see a bright ray of hope with the tourism roadmap that is set to unfold. One thing good about it, they say, is that it recognizes the fact that many of the good destinations in the country lack the proper or adequate infrastructure to sustain them as popular destinations, no matter that nature has bestowed us with magnificent natural settings. The National Tourism Development Plan has actually identified clusters in the country where investments and construction can focus on in the next few years. Right now, there are only a handful that continuously crop up in the itineraries of tour groups—Boracay (which tops the list), Coron, Cebu, Bohol, Palawan, the Calamianes Group of Islands, Baler and CamSur. In Cebu, there are two areas of potentially big growth and these are the Camotes Islands and Bantayan Island, which reportedly has white sand finer than Boracay. There is even an existing airstrip there already, so it’s ready for tourist invasion via small private planes. In 2-3 years time, watch how these two islands in Cebu will overtake many of the more popular ones now.

Which brings me to notice the perfect timing of the opening of the pilot school of the Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Institute (CTHI) at the Paragon Plaza in Mandaluyong City. I have to hand it to Samie Lim and his team, they know their business.

The CTHI is the first franchise ever of the Canadian Tourism College (CTC) and the Franchise Investment Holding Inc. (FIHI) holds the master franchise for the ASEAN region. Samie, also known as the “father of franchising” in the Philippines, is FIHI president, and former Finance Secretary Jose “Tito” Pardo sits as Chairman. These two gentlemen started FIHI several years back and their partnership has endured.

With the CTHI, Samie says it is their goal to make Filipinos the executives of choice in the hospitality business in ten years. The school will train Filipino workers, not just limiting the training to the Philippines but to other ASEAN countries as well. They will be using the curriculum of the Canadian Tourism College which, at an impressive track record of thirty years in the business, has successfully launched the hospitality careers of top executives across the globe.

I am personally excited about the prospect of this school which offers four different courses: two-year diploma course; two-month certification; two-week professional development training and short one-day courses. These students will be trained following world class standards which the Vancouver-based mother company has set for its college. Best of all, they do not have to travel all the way to Canada to get this education. The school is right here in our midst.

The first pilot school has opened, and another two are set to open in Boracay and Cebu. FIHI is offering franchises for different areas, and their plan is to initially open twenty franchises in the country’s tourism destinations. If you’re interested to get a franchise, the franchise fee is $25,000 (depending on the number of students) and the basic requirements include at least four classrooms, two laboratories, a restaurant, a hotel and a library. Right now, their pilot school in Paragon is already training 400 workers and their curriculum covers everything involved in the hospitality industry: from hotel and resorts management to travel management to ticketing agents of airlines to airport customer service. They have prudently excluded culinary arts. By the way, Samie’s group is eyeing to put up a total 100 franchises in Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and Singapore. 

Indeed, let’s “put the Philippines on the map of the hospitality industry by making it the hub of training in ASEAN and the Filipinos the executives of choice”, as Samie puts it.

League of Corporate Foundations

The city of Sta. Rosa was chosen by the League of Corporate Foundations for the first CSR Forum “CSR on the Go: Corporate Social Responsibility and Business Excellence” due to the many businesses in the various export processing zones and techno parks on Nov. 24 at the El Cielito Hotel. The League has over 70 operating and grant-making corporate foundations and corporations that promote strategic practices of corporate social responsibility.

The forum hopes to further the cause of corporate social responsibility among businesses and industries with such topics as Gearing Up Your CSR, Engaging with Partners and Stakeholders, Program Planning, Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation and Communicating your CSR.

Their partners’ “Meet and Greet” last Nov. 10 was attended by the foundations of SM, Toyota, UCPB-CIIF, One Meralco, ICCP Group, Manila Water, PCCI South Luzon, the University of Perpetual Help-Calamba, and the Laguna Water Company.

If your company is interested, visit the LCF website www.lcf.org.ph or text 0929 355 5308.

Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino.

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