The Philippines and South Korea sealed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) yesterday which is expected to ramp up tourism sector partnership between both nations.

Signed was the Tourism Cooperation for 2024-2029 which was one of the highlights of the first state visit of South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol to the country.

The MoU was signed between Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco and South Korean Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Yu In-chon, witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and South Korean President Suk-yeol at Malacañan Palace.

The signing of the agreement continues and expands the bilateral tourism cooperation between the two countries under an MoU on Tourism Cooperation previously signed in 2006.

“The Department of Tourism welcomes the signing of the implementation program on tourism cooperation which will further enhance the longstanding relations between our two nations in tourism and people-to-people exchanges. We anticipate this will increase demand for more Philippine destinations and tourism products from our number one source market, South Korea, and provide more opportunities for the economic advancement of our people, with the expected growth in our tourism numbers,” Frasco said.

Professional exchanges

Under the renewed cooperation deal, both countries have agreed to have an exchange of tourism professionals and administrators to strengthen mutual development and competency in the fields of hotels, resorts, cruises, ports, tourism products and other related industries; an exchange in tourism information on tourism development; strengthen tourism safety by establishing and improving tourism safety cooperation mechanisms through information sharing and contingency coordination; joint promotion and marketing to increase the overall number of tourist traffic between the two countries; participating in training and exchange; supporting each other’s tourism fairs, exhibitions, and other promotional initiatives; and encouraging tourism investment.

Also. a Joint Working Group will be formed to serve as a platform for both countries to ensure the discussion and enforcement of the program.

South Korea consistently ranks among the top source markets of international visitors for the country.

As of 7 October 2024, South Korea ranks number one in terms of international visitor arrivals, accounting for 27.16 percent of total foreign tourist arrivals since January 2024, with 1.23 million.