The Department of Tourism (DOT) has expressed its gratitude to lawmakers for the swift proceedings of the House Appropriations Committee on its proposed P3.79 billion budget for the fiscal year 2022.
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, who attended the hearing to discuss in detail the basis of the Department’s proposed budget, expressed her appreciation for the lawmakers who acknowledged the Department’s hard work throughout the pandemic.
“The help of Congress for the industry cannot be overemphasized as we always look up to both houses of Congress for support to our budget, policies, programs and opportunities to further develop our sector,” Puyat said after the public hearing on Friday, Sept. 3.
She also thanked them for supporting the advocacy for budget augmentation, particularly for Intramuros Administration (IA) and the National Parks and Development Committee (NPDC).
Once approved at the committee level, the DOT budget will go through the usual legislative mill along with the budgets of other departments—the House plenary, the Senate, the conference committee of both Houses, and finally through Malacañang for the President’s signature and final enactment of the General Appropriations Act of 2022.
During the budget deliberation, Laguna 3rd District Rep. Marisol Aragones-Sampello, chair of the House Committee of Tourism, lauded Puyat's enthusiasm in visiting tourism destinations to uplift local stakeholders despite the ongoing coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
Baguio City Rep. Marquez Ocampo Go also shared the same positive sentiment about the DOT, adding that the proposed P3.7 billion budget of the Department should be increased in light of the industry's significant contribution to the Philippine economy.
"Dahil sa malaking kontribusyon ng turismo, sa palagay ko kailangan dagdagan 'yan (Because of the tourism industry’s huge contribution to the economy, I think we should increase their budget)," Go said.
Meanwhile, Lanao del Norte 2nd District Rep. Abdullah Dimaporo seconded Go’s proposal, pointing out that additional appropriations for the DOT will bolster economic activities especially in the rural areas, and could attract those who have left the communities to return.
Before the pandemic, the tourism industry contributed a notable P2.51 trillion or close to 13 percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product. This dropped to just P973.31 billion in 2020 at the height of the health crisis.
Amid restrictions and the implementation of lockdowns since mid-March last year, the Department has been focusing heavily on providing immediate response to those displaced by the pandemic.
According to the DOT, it has so far conducted 352 trainings for industry stakeholders with a total of 19,871 participants as of August 26.
"During the industry's downtime, we were able to reskill, upskill and retool the tourism stakeholders with the health and safety protocols and operations under a new normal environment," Puyat said.
Aside from trainings, 44 new tourism circuits in addition to 71 that are still undergoing development to date were established by the Department.
“The DOT will continue to stay attuned to the ever-changing tourism trends and preferences of our domestic and foreign markets through continued product and market research," Puyat noted.
"And as international borders start to open, the key, strategic and opportunity markets will continue to be engaged and green lanes explored in preparation for revenge travel that is expected to ensue," she added.