NorthPhil expo gains support from Clark, travel organizations

MANILA, Philippines - Various government agencies and travel organizations are throwing their support to the Department of Tourism for organizing an international expo in Clark that will bring out to the fore the full potential of North Philippines as an international gateway and tourism hub.

DOT Central Luzon director Ronnie P. Tiotuico said many tourism-related government regional offices, if not all, had joined the various industry organizations in pledging their support for the NorthPhil Expo, including schools and companies doing business in the region and their corporate clients from other parts of the Philippines.

“Many are excited at the thought of seeing Clark become a full-fledged international airport for long-haul flights and trigger the rise of North Luzon as a primary destination for tourists from all countries north of the Philippines, particularly western and East Asia and including Europe and North America, where this global gateway offers a shorter flight option than the route to and from NAIA and other airports south of Manila,” Tiotuico said.

“The economic impact is simply overwhelming, even starting with the development of support infrastructure for that purpose, which will bring in financial resources from both the government and the private sector – both local and foreign – that will generate employment, businesses and taxes to turn North Philippines into another leading frontier for the country’s rise into a major NIC (newly-industrialized country),” Tiotuico stressed, sharing the same vision being mouthed by the leaders of various sectors in the region, particularly the Association of Tourism Officers of Central Luzon, the DOT’s partner in NorthPhil Expo.

He cited such vision as a motivating factor for both the new and long-standing exhibitors to join the expo, thereby increasing the expected number of participants and visitors.

With the NorthPhil Expo adopting this year’s World Tourism Day’s theme Tourism and Community Development, the DOT is evidently promoting product development to the local constituents and the rest of the supply chain to meet the trends and the anticipated rise in global market demand. “Indeed, the best is yet to come,” Tiotuico exclaimed.

Slated at the Event Center of the SM City Clark in the Clark Freeport Zone in Pampanga on November 14-16, the NorthPhil Expo is a project of the DOT offices in Central Luzon, Cagayan Valley, Ilocos Region and the Cordilleras.

The expo covers all tourism industry sectors, features colorful exhibits and offers business opportunities, sales discounts and exciting consumer marketing activities that include cultural presentations, competitions, prizes and raffle draws, and arts and crafts demonstration, among many others.