DOT chief Puyat to meet Cebu tourism stakeholders

Tourism secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat is in Cebu today to hold a dialogue with tourism stakeholders in Cebu.

The meeting will be held today in the afternoon at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino.

Right after the appointment of Puyat as Department of Tourism (DOT) secretary last May, Cebu tourism stakeholders, including the business sector had been wanting to sit down with the secretary as Cebu’s tourism sector plays a vital role in the economy.

Hotel, Resort and Restaurant Association (HRRAC) president Carlo Suarez earlier said that the industry wants to work closely with DOT.

Likewise, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) Tourism Committee chair Edwin Ortiz believes that Puyat can help Cebu's stronger stance to save Cebu from missing its potential to rake high revenue in tourism.

Initially, Puyat already met with some industry organizations like HRRAC, Federation of Tourists Transport in Cebu, among others.

Following the opening of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) Terminal 2, the outlook of Cebu’s tourism sector has never been this vibrant.

Ortiz said Cebu has to prepare well otherwise it will fail the expectations of the foreign, as well as domestic visitors.

The issue on infrastructure and the worsening traffic are among the major concerns of stakeholders today.

“The number one help that we need is to have the traffic problem in Cebu solved. The new airport terminal promises to triple or quadruple the number of tourists coming in but how do we let them cross Cebu from Mactan swiftly and comfortably? How do we make tourists enjoy going around the city if they waste hours getting stuck in traffic? So it's really improvement in infra that's top priority and this is under the Department of Transportation, maybe the Secretary can help us," said Ortiz.—