A higher budget for the Department of Tourism (DOT) will help ensure the gains of the tourism industry.
This developed as the DOT yesterday reported the Philippines as of August 19 registered 3.86 million international visitors , of which 92.05 percent or 3.55 million are foreigners, while the remaining 7.95 percent or 307,010 are overseas Filipinos.
The top 10 source markets are South Korea, the United States, Japan, China, Australia, Taiwan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Singapore, and Malaysia.
At the budget deliberations at the House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, the DOT said its National Expenditure Program (NEP) for next year consists of an allocation of P3.394 billion which is just a fourth of the agency’s proposed a budget of P13.4 billion, including additional funding to support its landmark projects.
That is slightly higher than the P2.98 billion in this year’s General Appropriations Act.
Based on the NEP, 83 percent or P2.84 billion of the 2025 budget will be for the Office of the Secretary. Attached agencies, National Parks Development Committee will get an allocation of P384 million, while the Intramuros Administration and the Philippine Commission of Sports Scuba Diving will have P146 million and P25 million, respectively.
“While there have been headwinds, both internal and external, that we continue to grapple with, we have worked as hard as we can with the resources we have been given to transform the Philippines to its full potential. But there is yet much work to be done and this will require significant resources,” DOT Secretary Christina Frasco told the hearing where she reported on the record-breaking performance of tourism in 2023.
Frasco said tourism last year surpassed all baseline targets set under the National Tourism Development Plan 2023-2028 in terms of expenditures and the contributions to national output and employment.
“Apart from the domestic trips and international tourist arrivals, we now have more products and destinations to offer. The results of which is a higher length of stay and more spending,” Frasco said.
Frasco said the Philippine Statistics Authority in 2023 recorded that over 6.2 million were employed in tourism last year. Tourism also contributed 8.6 percent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product with the combined domestic and international tourism expenditure reaching P3.36 trillion.
The Tourism Direct Gross Value Added was recorded at P2.09 trillion, posting a 47.9 percent growth–the highest growth of n in 24 years. The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas also noted a net trade surplus of around $2.45 billion in travel services, the highest in 15 years.
The Philippines exceeded its target with 5.45 million international visitors in 2023, surpassing the projected 4.8 million.
Frasco noted the high multiplier effect of tourism: 13 out of every 100 Filipinos directly benefit from the sector and by multiplying that to the average number of members per household, tourism easily benefits over 31 million Filipinos.
“Investing in tourism is not just a wise decision but a transformative one. We continue to be optimistic about the prospects of the industry,” Frasco said, adding P509 billion tourism investments in 2023 produced over P3.36 trillion in tourism receipts, representing a 456 percent return in investment.
Marikina City 2nd District Representative Stella Luz Quimbo, who sits as committee senior vice chairperson, commended the DOT’s initiatives and said: “It is important to take stock of the meaningful progress made and strengthen our tourism sector. Tourism is not merely a source of national pride; it is a critical pillar of our economy. The initiatives driven by the DOT underscores their unwavering commitment to positioning the Philippines as a leading global destination.”
In a separate statement, Frasco said the DOT has proposed the establishment of a new flagship project, the 24/7 tourist courts, to aid in the swift resolution of cases where tourists are involved.
Frasco made the proposal at the recent sectoral meeting with President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. in Malacañang, where the chief executive agreed that the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Department of Justice (DOJ), will work alongside the DOT to investigate and prosecute crimes related to tourists.
The DOT is also beefing up police forces across strategic locations of the country, primarily in areas with a high concentration of tourists.
Over 8,000 police personnel under the DOT’s Tourist Oriented Police for Community Order and Protection Program have been trained, done in collaboration with the DILG and PNP. But with the need to intensify police visibility and security, the DOT has also trained 270 barangay tanod and barangay intelligence network as police multipliers at present.
The tourism chief emphasized the DOT is also working with the Department of National Defense to strengthen the strategic development of tourism, especially in key areas of the country.
