Aquino cites tourism as country's engine of
growth
In keeping with his commitment to boost the
Philippine tourism, President Benigno S. Aquino III said his administration has
made good progress in the tourism sector to revitalize the country's
socio-economic growth.
In his speech during the courtesy call of the
7th North American Ambassadors, Consuls General and Tourism Directors Tour
(ACGTDT) held at the Rizal Hall in Malacanang on Friday, President Aquino said
his administration has undergone major institutional changes to effectively and
efficiently implement the national policy for tourism as a key driver towards
achieving rapid, inclusive, and sustained socio-economic growth for the
country.
"Tourism is one of the sectors we are
paying particular attention to, because it is one in which we can successfully
pursue our agenda of inclusive growth, given the multiplier effect on jobs and
the amount of money it brings into our country," the President said.
With public support, President Aquino said the
government succeeded to generate renewed interest and injected vibrancy in the
country's tourism.
"Our achievements in this sector are real
and tangible. Just to give you an idea, in the first five months of 2012 alone,
we welcomed over 1.8 million tourists. This number is more than half of the
yearly average of three million arrivals in the years before we took
office," he said.
"This number is also 39.6 percent of the
4.6 million tourist arrivals we hope to get this year—and historically, we get
even more visitors in the second half of the year. If all goes as planned, it
seems that we will achieve, and maybe even breach this target," the
President said.
The Chief Executive cited several programs and
projects that inevitably contribute to sustaining the momentum of the efforts
of both the public and private sectors to boost the country's tourism industry.
"The success we have experienced so far is
no miracle; it is a success borne out of the hard work and dedication, the
convergence of public and private sector efforts, and the implementation of
measures that make the most of what we have to offer. We didn’t reinvent the
wheel here; we just relied on a simple strategy: to make it easier and more fun
for tourists to come to the Philippines," he said.
"For starters, our Pocket Open Skies Policy
has already generated almost a 15-percent increase in incoming and outgoing
flights to the Philippines from January to June of this year. This has led to a
similar increase in inbound and outbound passenger traffic growth for both
international and domestic travelers," he said.
The Chief Executive said the government has put
a lot of work towards improving the country's infrastructure in support of
tourism, including airports and seaports. He said the Department of Public
Works and Highways has allocated P9.4 billion in 2011 and 2012 to construct,
rehabilitate, and improve roads leading to all of our tourist destinations.
"Their (department's) effort are
complemented by those of our Department of Transportation and Communications,
which focused our attention on upgrading primary and secondary airports, as
well as enhancing our air traffic control systems," he said.
"One of the infrastructure projects that I
am really very excited to inaugurate—and this will happen perhaps, the latest,
by 2015—is a connector for the North Luzon and South Luzon Expressways. Once
established, and we will not have one, we will actually have two, and these are
all private efforts. Once that is done, the travel time from Clark in Pampanga
to Calamba in Laguna will be reduced to about an hour and fifteen
minutes," he said.
The President said there is a proposal for a new
nautical highway which will bring down travel time from Luzon to Mindanao from
the current three days to fifteen hours.
During the event, the President reiterated his
government's economic achievements.
"Wise spending has allowed us to help our
countrymen more by improving and strengthening healthcare, education, and
social services. Philippine economic growth, at 6.4 percent in the first
quarter, has surpassed the expectations of most if not all analysts," he
said.
"According to the SWS Social Weather Report
for the Second Quarter of 2012, the Philippines’ unemployment rate went down to
26.6 percent in May, or the equivalent of 10.9 million adults unemployed—and
this is significantly lower than the 34.4 percent unemployment rate in March,
or 13.8 million unemployed. Of course, it is a private entity, the government
figures are much better," he said.
He said the self-rated hunger for the whole
country went down to 18.4 percent in May, compared to 23.8 percent in March.
"Our efforts to boost our economy—by
spending on infrastructure and other key sectors—are matched by our spending on
social services, to the tune of 567.9 billion pesos, or around 31 percent of
our entire budget for this year," he said. (js)
Aquino receives delegates to the 7th North
American Ambassadors, Consuls General and Tourism Directors Tour in Malacanang
President Benigno S. Aquino III received the 7th
North American Ambassadors, Consuls General and Tourism Directors Tour (ACGTDT)
delegates following the launching of the "It's More Fun in the Philippines"
Program.
In a courtesy call at the Rizal Hall of
Malacanang Palace on Friday, President Aquino met with the ACGTDT delegates
from the United States of America (USA) and Canada. Also in attendance was
Tourism Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the
Department of Tourism (DOT), the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the
Philippine Embassies and Consulates General in the US and Canada opened the 7th
North American Ambassadors, Consuls General and Tourism Directors Tour (ACGTDT)
last Wednesday with the "It's More Fun in the Philippines" Program.
The ACGTDT is being undertaken by the Philippine
government in cooperation with Raja Tours, Inc., the designated program ground
handler. The ACGTDT event ends on July 14.
Since its inception in 2005 by then Philippine
Ambassador to the United States and now Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del
Rosario, the ACGTDT has provided a vehicle for Filipinos, Filipino-Americans,
Filipino-Canadians and non-Filipinos from all over the US and Canada to
experience a truly unique tourism experience in the Philippines.
Featuring a program which allows tour delegates
to re-connect, re-visit and discover the many attractions the Philippines has
to offer, the ACGTDT has become the most anticipated government's tourism
initiative in North America, designed to encourage both Filipinos and
non-Filipinos alike to visit the country.
This year's edition of the ACGTDT came on the
heels of the launch of the "It's More Fun in the Philippines'
campaign" to boost the country's tourism.
During the courtesy call, President Aquino
thanked the ACGTDT for its support to the government's tourism initiative.
"I have always believed that each Filipino
is an ambassador of his country, and perhaps this is true especially for many
of you gathered here today. You may have built new lives and found your places
in new communities, but you also continue to maintain strong ties to the
motherland," he said.
The Chief Executive asked the ACGTDT delegates
to continue supporting Philippine tourism. "This is where I would once
again like to ask for your help. Our Department of Tourism has already done
much through its new campaign of “It’s more fun in the Philippines,” which has
been launched in different countries. In fact, your tour has adopted this as
its theme; and I can think of no better group to travel under the DOT’s
campaign than yours," he said. (js)
Palace hopes for Senate approval of defense
treaty with Australia
Malacanang said it hopes that the Philippine
Senate concurs with the Philippine-Australia Visiting Forces Agreement saying
the country could gain a lot in the mutual defense cooperation with Australia.
In a press briefing at Malacanang on Friday,
Secretary Ramon Carandang of the Presidential Communications Development and
Strategic Planning Office (PCDSPO) said Australia has already ratified the
treaty and there is no way the agreement can be revised at this time.
Sen. Miriam Defensor-Santiago has opposed the
approval of the Senate’s concurrence with President Benigno Aquino III’s
ratification of the agreement stressing that the defense treaty is vague and
open-ended.
“I think what’s important is -- Is it going to
be significant in terms of our security configuration and our security means?
Do we need the assistance? Is it in our benefit that it enhances our mutual
security? And I think the answer to those questions would be Yes,” Carandang
said.
“And we are hoping that the Senate can pass and
ratify the agreement with Australia at the soonest possible time.”
Asked by reporters if the Aquino administration
will look into similar defense treaties with other countries, Carandang said it
would not necessarily be visiting a forces agreement or defense treaties but
certain levels of cooperation with different countries.
Depending on the country’s needs and the
mutuality of its requirements, the Philippines can enter into different types of
agreement with other countries, he continued.
“Not necessarily DFA or treaties, it could be
simply supply contracts, or it could simply be joint exercises. There’s a whole
range of activities that we can undertake with different countries,” he
explained. (as/2:14pm)
