DOT confirms need to upgrade tourism infra

The Department of Tourism underscored the need to upgrade the country’s tourism infrastructure to ensure the steady growth of the industry.

DOT Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, in a keynote address at a European Chamber of Commerce of the Philippines (ECCP) luncheon in Makati City on Wednesday, said the agency is committed to proactively working with the private sector to boost the tourism sector.

“We, at the Department of Tourism, reaffirm our shared commitment to advancing Philippine tourism to even greater heights. The work of tourism development to nation building is not the work of the government alone; it is a cohesive, collaborative effort that requires partnership with the private sector,” she said.

Frasco stressed the importance of connectivity, convenience and equality in bridging tourism gaps, while also acknowledging the industry’s current challenges.

“I completely agree with the observation that the Philippines needs to elevate the quality of tourism infrastructure, whether by air land, or sea, as well as its digital infrastructure,” she said.

“In terms of connectivity, we do not enjoy the advantage that our neighbors have in ASEAN in terms of international land travel. Over 99 percent of our international tourists are dependent on air travel. Hence, it has been the advocacy of the Department of Tourism to work with our fellow government agencies, including the Department of Transportation, to focus on building up infrastructure and connectivity,” she said.

Frasco, who also serves as the vice chair of the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB), welcomed the investment of Air Canada, Air France and United Airlines in establishing new direct air routes to and from Manila as a welcome development for the aviation industry that would provide a significant boost to the country’s tourism.

“We’ve worked closely with our partner national government agencies to ensure that our routes development efforts are focused on not just recovering flights that were lost during the pandemic, but more importantly, expanding to new destinations, whether international or domestic,” she said.

“With this, we are seeing very encouraging progress from the resumed flights to the Philippines, as well as various destinations in our country and inaugural flights, such as, for example, one that has not been seen in 30 years, a direct flight to Europe, the Air France flight from Paris to Manila. I’m sure the European Chamber loves this news, and we thank you for your support in terms of articulating the necessity of having this direct flight,” said Frasco.

Frasco also highlighted Air India’s upcoming flights to Manila as a significant development, noting the Philippines’ interest in attracting more Indian travelers. She emphasized India’s substantial potential in the outbound tourism market.

_{Images are for reference only.Images and contents gathered automatic from google or 3rd party sources.All rights on the images and contents are with their legal original owners.}