While reopening the country’s borders to vaccinated tourists will boost tourism revenues, a business leader expressed some concerns on its impact on the country’s initiatives to contain Covid-19.
Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) Chairman Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. said in a “Laging Handa” briefing on Tuesday that there may be “danger” in bringing down the borders to allow more tourists in the country.
“May danger ’yung pag-o-open. Although makakatulong talaga sa job generation, especially sa tourism,” he said.
As of February 14, the Department of Tourism reported that inbound tourist arrivals from visa-free countries reached over 9,000; more than 5,000 of these were foreign tourists. The department sees more tourists going into the country following the reopening of the borders.
With this, Ortiz-Luis reminded the need to implement the health protocols strictly.
As for the proposed easing to Alert Level 1, the PCCI official said this would boost the economy given the increase in mobility. He said the country has a lot of catching up to do compared to its neighbors.
Easing up restrictions will benefit especially the non-essential sectors, he added, noting they have been unable to operate to a certain extent as per the mandate by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.
Recently, Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship Jose Maria A. Concepcion also urged the government to further ease the mobility restrictions soon, especially with the upcoming summer to encourage travel and other tourism-related spending.
More mobility for tourists will allow them to have more participation in economic activities, Concepcion said, which can help the tourism sector, including the tourist guides and souvenir shops. Other vacation spendings he cited are airfare, food and accommodation.
“We are in favor of lowering down the alert level but cognizant of the fact that Covid is still around,” PCCI President George Barcelon said in a recent event. He also stressed the need to put in place health protocols to avoid surge in cases.
The National Capital Region and most parts of the country are under Alert Level 2 until the end of February.