SOME P31 billion will be invested by the Duterte administration in constructing roads to key tourism destinations in 2019.
This was disclosed by Tourism Secretary Bernadette Fatima Romulo Puyat in a recent presentation before members of the World Trade Center Metro Manila (WTCMM) and tourism industry stakeholders.
“Our convergence with the Department of Public Works and Highways [DPWH], called the Tourism Road Infrastructure Prioritization Program [TRIPP], will spend P30.9 billion in 2019 to develop 1,236 kilometers of roads leading to tourist destinations all over the country. This is in addition to the P84.6 billion that we have invested so far since 2011 for 1,578 km of national and local roads,” she said.
These roads will be located in what the DOT has identified as 20 tourism clusters in the country, seven of which are in northern Philippines, six in central Philippines, and seven in southern Philippines. Of these clusters, nine are dubbed “gateway clusters,” which host international airports, as well as 48 tourism development areas.
According to the proposed National Expenditure Program for the DPWH for 2019, some P1.85 billion will be spent on the construction and improvement of access roads leading to airports, while about P2.5 billion will be earmarked for the construction/improvement of access roads going to seaports.
Outside of the National Capital Region, four provincial regions have been slated to receive the bulk of the budget for the construction/improvement of access roads leading to declared tourism destinations. President Duterte’s Davao region has been allocated the largest funds at some P1.61 billion, followed by Central Visayas at P1.46 billion, Western Visayas at some P1.3 billion, and Central Luzon at P915,000.
Among the DOT’s priorities, Romulo Puyat stressed, is the “[improvement] of policies on access, connectivity and security, as well as enhance programs on tourism infrastructure.”
This will help boost the number of foreign visitors in the Philippines to reach 12 million by 2022; and domestic travelers to 89.2 million. “[These] are expected to translate to P921 billion inbound receipts, and P12.95 billion domestic revenues,” she added.
The DOT chief also said she looked forward to getting support and closer collaboration with the WTCMM and other professional event organizers and venue managers, as the agency has drawn up a road map to position the Philippines as the “top-of-mind” destination for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibitions) events.
For 2018, she said the DOT’s marketing arm, the Tourism Promotions Board, is targeting to achieve the following: 300 business leads, seven bids assisted, 140 assisted MICE events, and invite 40 MICE organizers.
“In 2017 the global MICE authority, ICCA [International Congress and Convention Association], ranked Manila 59th among 658 under this category. This is a good indication of our capital city’s capacity in hosting and organizing MICE events, as well as the international participants’ preference to hold their events in our country,” said Romulo Puyat.