Kudos to GMR-Megawide on its fifth year

First off, allow me to greet our friends from GMR-Megawide of the Cebu Airport Corp. for celebrating its fifth anniversary, which they celebrated in JPark Island Resort & Waterpark in Mactan yesterday. Hmmm…five years have passed since we’ve known this group who took a few years before they were officially approved by the Department of Transportation and the Mactan Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA). How the years have flown by.

It was only five years ago when we learned that the GMR-Megawide won the bid to run MCIA for 25 years, which then senator Serge Osmeña opposed simply because he was helping the Filinvest group, something no senator should have openly supported. Honestly, I didn’t know a single person in GMR-Megawide, which was surprising to them since no one knew who I was. It was then that I met Mr. Andrew Harrison and learned about the guy and the company he represented. I guess you can say that the rest is history. My reckoning was right on the dot when I supported this group even if I didn’t know them. Of course, thanks to Google, I learned more about GMR-Megawide and what they have been doing in India and Istanbul.

A year and a half ago, GMR-Megawide finally finished the MCIA Terminal 2 to the complete surprise of the people in the aviation industry. It made MCIA have one of the best airport terminals in Asia. As we already know, the construction of Terminal 2 was done from a blank space, so it was easier for GMR-Megawide to build a completely different terminal. Frankly speaking, what I found truly remarkable was the way that the GMR-Megawide group transformed our old MCIA domestic terminal, which is supposed to be inaugurated by end of November. The newly refurbished Domestic Terminal is now a pleasant terminal to wait in for your flights to where you want to go.

Incidentally last year, MCIA was named Medium Airport of the Year in Asia Pacific by the CAPA Center for Aviation among airports with over 10 million annual passengers. CAPA hailed MCIA as the Regional Airport of the Year in 2016, recognizing it as a leader in advancing the local aviation industry. These recognitions show that GMR-Megawide is on the right track in ushering in airport improvements that they did in Terminal 2. With the opening of the renovated wing of Terminal 1 and the new Airport Village, this would create a whole new level of comfort, convenience, and friendliness at the Philippines’ first resort airport.

In just five years, GMR-Megawide has shown to the Filipino people that they can be trusted to come up with a totally new and modern airport facility. So while they still have 20 years to go, we must support GMR-Megawide in its future plans to further develop the airport in Mactan, especially when we put in a new runway so we can bring in more flights to Cebu. Congratulations GMR-Megawide!

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Before I forget, allow me to remind you that our country’s booming farm tourism industry will take center stage once more in the third Lakbay Bukid Awards to be given by the International School of Sustainable Tourism (ISST) in the 6th Farm Tourism Conference in Cebu City, this Wednesday and Thursday November 6 and 7. The Farm Tourism Awards was started in 2016 to recognize the country’s foremost farm tourism pioneers, practitioners, developers, and advocates from both the private and government sectors. This prestigious award is accorded to individuals, institutions, and groups who have made significant contributions to the development of the farm tourism industry. It also showcases the resiliency, ingenuity, and the strength of our hardworking farmers, fisher folks, and practitioners.

According to ISST president Mina Gabor, the conference is soliciting nominees who are actively involved in the farm tourism industry for at least five years. Among the eligible nominees are farmers and farm communities, cooperatives, organizations, educational institutions, media practitioners, agriculturists, scientists, government employees, business entities, and entrepreneurs who have made positive community impact with their farm tourism initiatives. The former tourism secretary says that the Lakbay Bukid Awards is expanding its coverage to Asia this year, and is receiving nominations from all over the continent.