The government is confident the Philippine tourism industry would bounce back from the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, which robbed the sector of billions of pesos in potential revenues last year.
According to Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, the severe restrictions imposed on mobility and travel, including lockdowns, in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus hit tourism especially hard.
While reports of new Covid-19 variants from the United Kingdom, South Africa and Brazil raise fears of fresh border closures around the world, he said the Philippines remained firm on reenergizing the sector on the back of the accelerating distribution of coronavirus vaccines.
“We expect that the vaccines being rolled out in the Philippines and other parts of the world would result in gradual adjustments in our protocols on opening our borders wider,” Lopez said in Taglish in a briefing on Friday.
He also said the country’s economic fundamentals remained strong, noting that sectors like agriculture and manufacturing had begun recovering from the impact of the pandemic.
“Our economy is waiting, especially the tourism sector,” he added in Taglish. “As long as [our fears] go away and consumer and business confidence resume, everything will return to its place.”
Earlier, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat reported that total receipts from local tourism reached only P81.40 billion last year, compared to P482.16 billion in 2019. Foreign investor arrivals also fell by 84 percent to 1.3 million in 2020 from 8.2 million a year earlier.
Tourism Undersecretary Benito Bengzon Jr. said his department had been doubling its efforts to “restart Philippine tourism and to [make] it into [a] more resilient and sustainable industry.”
“The Department of Tourism (DoT), along with other national tourism organizations worldwide, continues in its pursuit to develop and innovate ways to assist our stakeholders as we face the new normal,” he added.
According to him, the DoT has crafted its Tourism Response and Recovery Plan (TRRP) that would serve as a guide to recovery of tourism in the country.
He said that as early as March, the department initiated consultations with the private sector, local government units and other state agencies, as well as micro, small and medium-sized enterprises on this matter.
“The tourism industry is a cross-cutting, cross-border industry and we firmly believe that this puts the industry in the best position to lead recovery in the future. This is, however, a shared challenged that must be met with shared responsibility,” Benzon said.
“[A]s we prepare for the reopening of the industry, we also look forward to the cooperation and support of everyone. By working through coordinated approach, we will be ensured that the reopening of tourism will benefit more people and communities,” he added.
Source: ManilaTimes
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