DOT to sustain tourism growth, ride wave of travel resurgence
TOURISM Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco reaffirmed the Department of Tourism’s (DOT) commitment to sustain tourism gains as the agency foresees a robust recovery for the country’s industry.
Frasco’s reaction was made following “encouraging figures” released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on the Philippine Tourism Satellite Accounts (PTSA) for 2022.
The tourism direct gross value added (TDGVA) share of the sector to the Philippine economy, as measured by the gross domestic product, was estimated at 6.2 percent for 2022. Further, last year’s TDGVA amounted to P1.38 trillion, 36.9 percent higher compared with P1 trillion in 2021, the figures showed.
Internal tourism expenditure, which combines inbound and domestic tourism expenditure, also saw a significant increase last year, tallying P1.87 trillion in 2022, up by 131.2 percent from P810 billion in 2021.
“We are elated and inspired by the figures enclosed in the 2022 Philippine Tourism Satellite Accounts. We ascribe last year’s gains, foremost, to our President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr., whose clear vision and confidence in the tourism industry sparked a strong sense of inspiration and urgency for the DOT, and all players that make up the tourism value chain – our national and local government partners, and tourism stakeholders in the private sector – to work together. This whole-of-government approach to tourism allowed the Philippines to achieve great heights less than a year into office,” Frasco said.
“As we continue to ride the wave of travel resurgence coming out of the pandemic, we in the DOT acknowledge the need for initiatives that will make the Philippine tourism industry sustainable, resilient, and top-of-mind for the next several years,” she added.
The 2022 PTSA showed that inbound tourism expenditure posted the highest growth out of the different forms of tourism expenditure, registering P368.67 billion last year compared with P27.63 billion in 2021, or a growth rate of 1,234.2 percent.
Inbound tourism expenditure, which refers to the expenditure of non-resident visitors or those foreign and Filipinos permanently residing abroad, contributed 5.9 percent to the country’s total exports in 2022, compared to 0.6 percent share in 2021.
Domestic tourism on the rise
With domestic tourism expenditure in 2022 reaching P1.50 trillion, or a 92.3 percent growth from P782.57 billion in 2021, the DOT chief stressed the importance of further boosting the country’s domestic tourism.
Domestic tourism expenditure, or expenditure of resident visitors within the Philippines either during domestic trips or as part of their international travel, contributed 9 percent to the household final consumption expenditure.
Among the DOT’s initiatives aimed at domestic tourism promotion are the North Luzon Travel Fair last year, Mindanao Travel Expo earlier this year, and the Central Philippines Travel Fair Expo on June 16 inviting key travel and tourism stakeholders from Luzon, Mindanao and the rest of Visayas to converge in Iloilo.
Apart from continuing existing tourism circuits in regions across the country, the DOT also launched the Philippine Experience: Heritage, Culture and Arts Caravans, a nationwide program across all regions of the country highlighting key, emerging and lesser-known destinations, and featuring various tourism products such as pilgrimage, heritage and food tourism as well as wellness, and arts and local products of communities and micro, small and medium enterprises.
“One of our objectives to be pursued under the Marcos administration is the maximization of domestic tourism as it has proven a very strong and reliable contributor to the economy. Through the Philippine Experience Program, our regional expos, fairs, and the like, we intend to generate tourism opportunities by giving our travel and tourism stakeholders opportunities to immerse themselves in other destinations and regions and to come up with tour packages that they can dovetail with their offerings,” the DOT chief explained.
Meanwhile, employment in tourism identified industries was estimated at 5.35 million in 2022, higher by 9.3 percent than 4.9 million in 2021. The 2022 PTSA also recorded the share of employment in tourism industries to the country’s total employment at 11.4 percent, which increased from 11.1 percent in 2021.
