Tourism

Tourism should be a principal foreign exchange earner and a major job creator for us. Not only do many of our islands look like paradise on earth, our people are among the most hospitable too.

Our islands have consistently been among the top places to visit in the list of many tourism publications. Siargao, Boracay, Palawan for El Nido and Coron, and Panglao in Bohol have won rave reviews.

Then there is a new island few of us have heard of that will soon be a top attraction. Bugsuk, an island the size of Panglao in the Balabac group south of Palawan, is being prepared for the big time.

Recently acquired by San Miguel Corp., a development plan is now being finalized that will make it eclipse any other island development we now have. Indeed, this early, Ramon Ang has constructed an airport runway that is already certified to take in an Airbus A350.

According to Ramon, he wants to show he is determined to make the island easily accessible by direct flights not just from Manila, but also from Hong Kong and Singapore.

RSA’s development philosophy is strictly sustainable. He is committed to preserve the forest cover of the island, as well as its white sand beaches and pristine water. It will not be an exclusive resort like Amanpulo or Balesin, but prettier and affordable.

Other than the workers in the pearl farm of Jewelmer, the island doesn’t have permanent inhabitants now. It has a Marine contingent as part of our defense of the West Philippine Sea. Visitors from nearby islands come regularly to enjoy its wonders.

So Bugsuk will be San Miguel’s initial foray in the tourism industry. RSA promises it will be the best planned tourism island in the country.

One of his first priorities is broadband connection. He promises that visitors can work from the beach as if they are in their offices. Then again, he said, who would want to think of work in such a pretty setting.

What excites RSA about tourism is the employment potential it can generate.

The tourism industry accounted for approximately 11.9 percent of the total employment in 2020. Its pre-pandemic level is 13.6 percent.

Like in other countries, the pandemic clobbered our tourism industry. From over eight million arrivals in 2019, that number dropped to 1.48 million by the end of 2020, with virtually no visitors from the time global travel was banned.

But we seem to have turned around. The World Travel & Tourism Council’s latest Economic Impact Report (EIR) shows that our tourism industry is now the world’s fourth fastest growing in 2021.

This was revealed by Julia Simpson, president and  CEO of the WTTC, during the Global Summit we hosted in the Philippines.

WTTC’s EIR for the Philippines shows that in 2021, the sector supported 7.8 million jobs, representing a substantial 20.5 percent rise in 2020, compared with a global increase of 6.7 percent.

Simpson sees a massive employment boost for the sector, leading to the recovery of 1.3 million more jobs compared to the previous year.

With travel and tourism employment forecast to grow annually by an average of three percent over the next 10 years, nearly three million new jobs could be created, accounting for 21.5 percent of all jobs in the Philippines.

Give credit to outgoing Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo Puyat for the amazing turnaround. She kept busy during the dark months of the pandemic. She assisted industry stakeholders survive and prepare for a reversal of fortune.

The Tourism department continued promotions to keep our brand top-of-mind. A digital and social media campaign called “Wake Up in the Philippines” was launched during this time to maintain our presence in the global market.

Anticipating that travel will resume and the need to excite and inspire people to travel again, Sec. Puyat  commissioned Jun Ventura to do a third edition of his award winning series of books, The Bucket List Book Philippines. The book has won a PATA  (Pacific Area Travel Association) Gold Award in the “Travel Journalism  – Travel Guidebook” category.

The third edition is aptly titled: “Rekindling Travel”. This edition features breathtaking photography of  26 destinations that required presenting this edition into two volumes of more than 500 pages.

Volume 1 presents interesting nuggets of popular spots. For instance, the farm tourism attractions of Baguio and the Cordillera Region, and new attractions that have opened up in Ilocos Norte.

Volume 2 meanwhile reveals under the radar destinations like Region 8/Eastern Visayas. Comprising six provinces, 90 pages in volume 2 was devoted to this unfamiliar region that truly has a lot of pristine spots.

With the worst of the pandemic behind us, the Philippines as of last month, welcomed over 463,947 foreign tourists, a number that exceeded the DOT’s expectations. On the other hand, our neighboring countries continue to struggle with the reopening of their borders for leisure travel.

The main reason why “revenge travelers” are choosing the Philippines is because we have one of the simplest entry processes in Southeast Asia. And yet, as of this writing, the Philippines continues to report one of the lowest daily COVID case numbers in Asia.

As she steps down, Sec. Berna has set the winning strategy for the new normal: work with MSMEs to enhance their competitiveness, increase the participation of women and marginalized sectors in tourism development, strengthen  the capacities of destinations for conservation and climate-smart investments, and guide LGUs with their crisis management plans.

“We’re handing over a tourism industry that’s healing, but still scarred. We’re turning over our best-laid plans for rebuilding a sustainable, inclusive, and resilient industry in the form of the National Tourism Development Plan 2022-2028 to guide the next DOT Secretary and their team as they steer the course to full recovery over the next six years,” Sec. Berna said.

Now that our tourism industry is back, the active investment of conglomerates like San Miguel means a lot. All of us should also go out there and visit beautiful parts of our country we do not even know exist.

Boo Chanco’s email address is [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @boochanco.