RP tourism gets needed push

The Subterranean River Natural Park in Puerto Princesa, Palawan is inching its way into the list of the new “Seven Wonders of the World” after clinching a spot in the top 77 nominees through a worldwide campaign. If ever it does make the list, that would mean a whole lot of good things for the Philippines. Aside from being a historical milestone, having one of the “Wonders” is sure to boost our country’s reputation as a prime tourist destination.

The importance of tourism to a nation’s economy undeniably has the most impact in terms of its multiplier effect. In fact, most countries rely on their tourism industry to spur economic growth and to generate revenues for their governments. And this is exactly what keeps the Republic of Maldives afloat through these years since becoming an independent state in 1965 after years of British rule.

I have these good impressions about Maldives in my most recent trip there under the auspices of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR). I was part of the media group that covered the mission in Maldives led by Sen.Loren Legarda as the UNISDR “champion” for disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation.

About 60 percent of the gross domestic product of Maldives is generated by its tourism industry. The number of tourist arrivals in Maldives average at more than 600,000 a year, or this is double the number of their population.

When Maldives was struck by the Indian Ocean tsunami in December 2006, Chinese kung-fu actor Jet Li who starred in some Hollywood action movies was on vacation with his family in one of the resort islands there. Jet Li and his family survived their harrowing experience but it did not stop them from going back to Maldives to spend their family vacation there.

Thus, it’s no surprise why the Maldivian government has been aggressive in trying to bring in to their country foreign investors to bankroll the development of their islands into tourist resorts. Maldives has about 1,192 islands but only 200 are inhabited while the rest are just plain islands surrounded by blue lagoons, atolls and vast protected coral reefs and marine areas.

We were taken to Banyan Tree that operates one of the island beach resorts in Maldives. As I gathered, Banyan Tree is also putting up one tourist resort in our very own Palawan.

There is no direct flight from Manila to Maldives but we flew there via Singapore. The tiny island state of Singapore is another very excellent example of a fast-growing economy in the South East Asian region. Before becoming the impressive city-state that it is today, it was a British colony also struggling for independence. It took a great leader like Lee Kuan Yew, who dared to dream for economic prosperity and to transform Singapore into one of the most powerful island nations in Asia today. Now, Singapore’s “new look” has astounded the world, that apart from its bullish economy brought about by foreign direct investments, it has become a prime tourist destination in the Asian region.

This reality tells us how much tourism changes and improves the lives of the people as the chief engine of a nation’s economic growth. Though our beloved Philippines is endowed with rich natural resources and world-class tourist attractions, our government has barely tapped the full potentials of tourism.

Even months after President Arroyo had already signed into law the Tourism Act of 2009, we have yet to see the implementing rules and regulations of this landmark piece of legislation pushed in Congress by the indefatigable Sen. Richard “Dick” Gordon. Being a former Tourism Secretary himself, Gordon knows where he speaks from in his criticisms against the government’s lackadaisical attitude in implementing an aggressive tourism campaign for the country.

Fortunately, we have people like Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) chairman and chief executive officer Efraim Genuino who is spearheading a Philippine tourism infrastructure project that would help sell the country abroad as a choice place for family vacation, nature trips, conventions and adventure travels. Genuino deserves credit in pursuing this flagship project of the government to build the “Bagong Nayong Pilipino-Entertainment City Manila.”

Considered to be the biggest foreign investment in the Philippines, the Entertainment City will feature six-star theme hotels, amusement parks, educational and cultural complexes, shopping malls, a sports stadium, restaurants, convention halls, state-of-the-art theaters, gaming centers, race tracks, residential villages, and other facilities, some of which are either undergoing construction or already existing like Henry Sy’s Mall of Asia at the Manila Bay reclamation area.

As what Genuino envisioned, the Entertainment City Manila will not only become a catalyst for economic growth for its “multiplier effect” on both upstream and downstream industries. He firmly believes this flagship project could also become a means of stopping the “brain drain” in our country. We have lost many of our professionals and highly skilled workers to better paying jobs abroad. This has been the downside of deployment of overseas Filipino workers whose remittances have sustained the Philippine economy through these years.

Through this $15-billion tourism development project, it is projected to create at least 450,000 new jobs. This number is seen to increase once the Entertainment City Manila becomes fully operational.

Genuino says that salaries in the Entertainment City shall be paid in dollars and pay scale will be the equal of those paid by foreign companies. This means that Filipino workers don’t need to travel farther than Manila to find a job that pays well. Our professionals overseas may even decide to come back to the Philippines and start what could become a “reverse migration.” However, for all that the Entertainment City promises, others are still criticizing the Pagcor chief for being too ambitious.

But with at least two major investors just waiting for the green light to begin construction, those critics might be singing a different tune once they see the first hotels and amusement parks being built. Who knows, Genuino dreams, by the next decade we might have two entries into the Seven Wonders of the World.