DOT lays out map for sustainable tourism

CEBU CITY–The Department of Tourism (DOT) will pursue its sevenpoint strategic policy direction for sustainable tourism in the country.

DOT Undersecretary Benito Bengson Jr. laid out the plan during his keynote message at the Tourism Innovation Forum Thursday.

The forum was organized by the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) as one of the key events of Cebu Business Month (CBM).

It tackled a range of topics that included global tourism trends and competitiveness, innovative tourism activities and best practices geared towards achieving sustainable tourism for Cebu and Central Visayas.

Bengson named the agenda covers the Tourism Act, the National Tourism Development Plan (NTDP), access and connectivity to the world, networking and multi-sector consultations, global tourism promotions and marketing, the Boracay Task Force and the promotion of Farm Tourism.

Bengson said the department will stay focused on the core function of the Tourism Act to remain relevant and adoptive to the tourism global arena. “We are not about to complete the feasibility studies of the DOT operations in other countries for us to be relevant as a department,” he said.

The NTDP is being reviewed to determine what programs to retain, and to roll out a similar road map for education tourism, capitalizing on the country’s edge in having English as a Second Language (ESL), Bengson said.

Air access and connectivity are critical because the country is an archipelago and 98 percent of tourists ride planes.

“We have to upgrade our aviation facilities, airports, aesthetics in all aspects of our airports. Improve public aviation in islands and in far-flung tourists’ destinations,” Bengson said.

The country must have friendlier visa guidelines. Top level discussions are done now to offer innovative interventions in balancing visa guidelines, he said.

For global advertising, DOT will keep the “more fun” campaign that has proven to be very popular, Bengson said.

DOT will closely monitor trends in digital technology to reach more travelers. “We are pursuing countries that have not been explored by our tourism market such as the North and South East Asia as well as the Mediterranean countries,” Bengson said.

Closer to home, the department will continue to find ways on how to balance tourism and environment protection and to ensure that the tourism industry adopts green infrastructure techniques. (Minerva BC Newman)