BETTER DAYS
Senator Sonny Angara
Among the many economic sectors affected by the pandemic, Philippine tourism was hit hardest. International Labour Organization (ILO) Asia-Pacific Regional Director Chihoko-Asada Miyakawa described the impact of the global health crisis on the industry as “nothing short of catastrophic” with some 1.4 million tourism-related jobs in the country. In 2020, revenue losses peaked at ₱1.54 trillion according to Department of Tourism (DOT), with arrivals dropping to less than two million in the same year or four times less than the 2019 figure of 8.2 million.
It was not just the pandemic that wreaked havoc on this industry however. Earlier this year, Deutsche Welle posted an article documenting how tourism-dependent areas of the country were barely surviving from the double damage caused by the pandemic and by extreme weather disturbances like Typhoon Odette.
Among the people interviewed was Jofelle Tesorio, a Palawan-based owner of tourist cottages, who said that their family’s income decreased by 80 percent due to the limited operations — leaving barely enough money to buy necessities and keep their small business running.
Another was Melot Abejo, a resort and spa owner in Siargao, who lamented how Typhoon Odette dragged the island’s recovery “back to zero.” Abejo emphasized that the focus should be rebuilding from the “precarious financial position” of tourist enterprises as they have lost a lot in the past few years.
The tourism industry in neighboring countries experienced something similar. Brunei lost two out of five tourism jobs in 2020, while Vietnam saw its tourism workers shift to informal work that pay less. The Asian Development Bank (ADB) noted how international arrivals in Asia and the Pacific were 95 percent lower in the third quarter of 2021 compared to the pre-pandemic period as the region reeled from the pandemic’s effects.
Thankfully, we are now seeing countries, such as Indonesia, slowly reopening their borders by expanding quarantine-free travel beyond tourist destinations. Or Thailand, which removed some documentary requirements for visitor arrivals. Then there are countries like Singapore, who on top of relaxing restrictions, have granted wage support lasting three months to workers in the tourism and aviation industry. There are others, such as South Korea, who established a separate fund altogether to support tourism companies through non-collateral financing.
Our own government has already followed suit and lifted last month a two-year ban on foreign travelers. This move has allowed some 212,000 visitors to travel into the country — leading to a 130-percent increase in passenger arrivals compared to the same period last year.
It should be noted that the Bayanihan 2 law which we sponsored and was enacted in September 2020 included an equity infusion to the Small Business Corporation (SBCorp) for the provision of low-interest loans intended to keep tourism businesses afloat.
However, of the ₱4 billion set aside for the said purpose under Bayanihan 2, only ₱278 million worth of loans to the tourism sector have been approved and another ₱524 million are “in the pipeline for processing” according to SBCorp as of end-February 2022.
The low uptake is understandable because industry players throughout the pandemic were rightly wary of availing more loans, especially in the face of diminished consumer demand and an unsure, anxious-ridden environment. But now that with improving vaccination rates and declining Covid cases, this largely untapped loan facility could really jumpstart tourism’s revival and help the industry prepare for an even greater influx of visitors in the coming months.
As it is, there are positive signs already. Recently, Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat disclosed that the arrivals for this time of the year are higher than expected. Traditionally, the annual influx of visitors would not start until the middle of April. In addition, Manila is set to host the 21st Global Summit of the World Travel and Tourism Council beginning April 20. Hundreds of tourism executives are set to attend. This could be the venue where the country can showcase its efforts towards reopening the tourism industry.
The sector’s revival after its two-year slump will go a long way towards uplifting the lives of many of our people, restoring revenue streams of local government units, and reviving the economy as a whole. All agencies, particularly the SBCorp and the DOT, should reach out to operators who need assistance so that their operations can return back to normal as soon as possible. With Philippine tourism slowly picking up, it is only proper that all are aboard towards ensuring that the sector is well-equipped to accommodate the upcoming spike in demand.
Email: sensonnyangara@yahoo.com| Facebook, Twitter & Instagram: @sonnyangara
Senator Sonny Angara has been in public service for 15 years—nine years as Representative of the Lone District of Aurora, and six as Senator. He has authored and sponsored more than 250 laws. He is currently serving his second term in the Senate.