Ranking members of the House of Representatives have underscored the need to rev up the tourism sector after two years of being dormant under the Covid-19 pandemic.

Boracay, arguably the crown jewel of Philippine tourism (RJ Baculo/ Unsplash)

House Ways and Means panel chairman, Albay 2nd district Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda has urged the government to direct the full resumption of all restricted tourism activities and the promotion of more foreign direct investments (FDIs) in response to the February jobs report which indicates that the number of jobless Filipinos reached 3.13 million from 2.93 million in January.

Salceda added that inflation remains a threat to jobs in FDI-driven industries such as the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector and electronics.

“We really have to open up, because the fundamentals will tend to be a little less rosy due to inflation,” Salceda said.

“That means growth will come not because prospects are better, but because we opened up priorly existing legal impediments, such as restrictions on tourism due to Covid-19, or because of our FDI rules,” noted the Bicol solon.

Salceda cautioned that “with elevated inflation, firms will be less certain investment will be profitable. So, fundamentally, the incentive to invest gets a little dampened".

“Of course, we have not maximized our investment horizons due to FDI restrictions and due to COVID-19 rules. So, let’s open up, so we can create jobs. That will include a rollback of tourism restriction. Tourism accounts for anywhere between 12 to 14 percent of GDP (gross domestic product)," the economist-solon further explained.

Meanwhile, House Social Services panel chairman, Quezon City 5th district Rep. Alfred Vargas has filed a resolution calling for the implementation of "measures aimed at catalyzing the recovery of our tourism sector".

“After more than two years of virtual inactivity, our tourism sector is raring to welcome back local and foreign tourists. But many of our tourism stakeholders need adequate assistance to fully bounce back,” Vargas said in a statement.

The three-term congressman commended Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat for steering the sector through the difficulties of the economic lockdown. “Secretary Puyat did a commendable job in mitigating the adverse impact of the pandemic. The now needs all the help in bringing the tourism sector back on its feet,” he said.

"We owe a lot to our countrymen in the tourism industry, not only for their contributions to our economy, but also for their promotion of our culture, historical sites, natural wonders, and our heritage," he further said.

The Quezon City lawmaker said an “integrated tourism recovery roadmap” is also indispensable, considering the value of the tourism sector to millions of Filipinos.

In 2019, the tourism industry generated 5.71 million jobs and contributed 12.7 percent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Vargas suggested that policy and program solutions should be quickly explored. These include financial and wage subsidies for micro, small, and medium-sized tourism enterprises, increased investments and capital support, and comprehensive technical and fiscal assistance to local government units (LGUs) for tourism promotion.

“There has been a generally steady improvement in the state of our tourism sector, with the DOT expressing optimism for a strong recovery for this important pillar of our economy, especially this 2022,” Vargas said in his resolution.

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