The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has increased the allocation for the Tourism Road Infrastructure Program (TRIP) this year to P17.69 billion, a P602 million increase from last year’s approved budget of P17.087 billion.
The funds will be used for the construction, reconstruction, upgrading and improvement of roads and bridges connecting to declared tourist destinations.
“President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has been very consistent with his pronouncements that infrastructure development is a priority under this administration. And so we, at DBM, shall do all we can to support the realization of this objective. And so we ensured that various infrastructure projects nationwide are allocated with necessary funds to support the Build, Better, More program,” said Amenah Pangandaman, DBM secretary.
Pangandaman said mobility and connectivity are “vital components in tourism development.”
“The Philippines has so many majestic places. But how will we attract tourists if there is no transport infrastructure in place to get them to these destinations with ease,” she added.
TRIP is a convergence initiative of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and the Department of Tourism (DOT).
The budgetary allocation is in line with the DOT’s National Tourism Development Plan, which envisions a globally competitive, environmentally sustainable and socially responsible tourism industry that promotes inclusive growth through employment generation and equitable distribution of income.
Under the 2023 General Appropriations Act, the P17.689 billion budget will be distributed to tourism infrastructure projects in Ilocos Region, Cordillera Administrative Region, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol Region, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas, Zamboanga Peninsula, Northern Mindanao, Davao, Soccsksargen and Caraga.
