Tourism breaks out

Tourism has remained an underachiever for the economy which is a paradox considering that the country has among the world’s most spectacular natural attractions.

In several administrations, the focus was on promotion which meant coining the catchiest slogans to draw in tourists but which did not achieve their desired arrival targets.

Last year, everything changed as the Department of Tourism reported a banner year. So what gives?

Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, in a recent visit to DAILY TRIBUNE, said a focus on the basics, such as infrastructure, roads leading to tourist spots, building tourism support centers, and constructing public toilets helped perked up tourism in the country.

Under her watch, the focus is on building more tourism structures, leveraging her experience as a long-time local government official of Liloan, Cebu.

Strategic projects, including tourist rest areas and roads to enhance connectivity and improve the overall tourist experience, the expansion of the country’s product portfolio, digitalization, and strengthening of the Filipino workforce, have been initiated during her term.

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), the world’s authority on the sector, said in a report that the Philippines had the biggest domestic tourism market in Southeast Asia last year.

In 2023, the domestic market was valued at P2.9 trillion, which was the highest contribution of the travel sector to the national output in Southeast Asia.

The WTTC estimated the Philippine tourism industry’s contribution to the economy, including businesses indirectly benefiting from the boom, at P4.34 trillion, equivalent to 18 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP).

According to the report, the Philippines captured the highest share, at 24.8 percent, of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations tourism earnings last year.

Frasco said the basics are what matter for the tourism industry. Tourists should feel comfortable in their destinations.

She said first aid stations have been upgraded in prime surfing and diving spots since a frequent complaint is that it takes almost an hour to reach a decent hospital from these prime attractions.

Since the DoT has struck the winning formula for the tourism industry, it is expected that Congress will contribute to keeping the sector’s momentum through the yearly budget allocations.

Frasco mentioned the indicators that matter the most — the contributions of tourism to jobs generation and the aspiration to achieve upper middle-income status under the administration of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The country now has more products and destinations to offer, resulting in a longer stay for tourists, which translates to bigger spending.

In defending her agency’s budget before the House of Representatives, Frasco said much work needs to be done and this will require significant resources.

Working together, “we will be able to accomplish our President’s aspirations for the Philippines to become a tourism powerhouse,” she said.

Based on the DoT’s computation, 65 million Filipinos benefited from the resurgent industry.

Frasco said 12.9 percent of the entire national workforce is employed in tourism-related sectors, which means that 13 of every 100 Filipinos directly benefit from this vibrant industry.

Multiply that by the average number of five members per household and tourism easily benefits over 65 million Filipinos.

Based on return-on-investment (RoI) figures, Frasco said that infusing capital into tourism will be among the wisest uses of public money.

With a P509-billion tourism budget in 2023, both from the public and private sector, this has produced over P3.36 trillion in tourism receipts, representing a 456-percent RoI, she said.

Tourism can easily be the third pillar of the economy, after overseas Filipino workers’ remittances and the business process outsourcing industry, and with adequate support it will happen sooner rather than later.