Following the grand opening of the passenger terminal building of the Batangas Port in Batangas City that was graced by President Marcos, the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) said it is planning to improve and construct more projects in order to modernize and boost the sea travel experience in the country.
PPA General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago said the priority are cruise-dedicated passenger terminal as its way of constributing to the national government, through the Department of Tourism, to lure more local and foreign tourists to explore tourist sites of the Philippines.
"Other than ports that we are improving, we are also constructing dedicated cruise terminals like Siargao. Hopefully, the Siargao cruise terminal would be operational by third quarter of this year,” said Santiago.
At least 300,000 tourist arrivals from cruise ships are expected for this year and Santiago said some of the projects that the PPA initiated in the past are now usable.
Among them are the cruise terminals in Coron in Palawan, Curimao in Ilocos Norte, Salomague Port in Ilocos Sur, Buruanga in Aklan, and in Camiguin.
Aside from cruise-dedicated terminals, also under construction are new passenger terminal buildings that include the one in Zamboanga which is expected to open this year.
In order to ensure the availability of more ships with the improvement on Philippine ports, Santiago said they are continuously coordinating with the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) for the deployment of more passenger vessels.
"PPA still has a lot of surprises for our kababayan. You will see new terminals opening and the design of our terminals will reflect the local culture like the one in Calapan Port wherein the theme there was on the culture of Mangyan people,” said Santiago.
For the passenger terminal building in Zamboanga City, Santiago said it will reflect the local flavor in the area.
Marcos earlier lauded the PPA for initiating the construction of modern facilities to improve the sea travel experience of the Filipino people.
“I am sure of the comfortable travel of of our passengers who are encourage to tracel because of these modern facilities. For this, we have to commend the Philippine Ports Authority and the Department of Transportation for accomplishing together this important project and delivering what we have promised to the people,” Marcos said in his speech during the opening of the passenger terminal building at the Batangas Port/
Santiago, for his part, has expressed confidence that the improvement in various ports across the country will provide more opportunities for the local residents.
“These improvements have paved the way to accommodate more passengers. We are looking at about 300 percent increase in revenue,” said Santiago.
“With more passengers, the positive effects also reflect on the local economy because more food kiosks would be available, which means more services that will contribute to the local employment and small businesses in the community,” he added.