PPP management to help achieve Phl arrival target

CEBU, Philippines - The Hotel, Resort, Restaurant Association of Cebu (HRRAC) calls for the harmonization of the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) concept to help realize the goal of achieving 10 million foreign tourists arrival, as well as to maximize the 30 million domestic travel market.

HRRAC president Hans Hauri said that aside from pushing further the implementation of PPP to boost tourism, the Local Government Units (LGUs) also needs to bank on tourism as a primary income source for their units, Hauri believes that these are just few of the mediums in order to achieve the goal.

In a statement released yesterday Hauri emphasized that after pronouncing the rosy projection of the country’s tourism sector, the PNoy-led government should seriously consider removing the obstacles that are hurting the sector.

These he said are air safety classification/categorization back to level 1; the removal of common carrier tax, and the gross billing tax.

Hauri, who is also the vice president of the Tourism Congress of the Philippines for Visayas, said that decongesting Manila NAIA 1,2 and 3 airports; resolving the Scarborough shoal for the Chinese government to facilitate visas for their citizens to travel to the Philippines; cancellation of air agreements that have not been consumed for more than two years, and offer those traffic rights to other interested carriers; to study the concept of visa on arrival with payment at that point instead of expanding consular services abroad, among others should be the primary concern that will be given focus by the government.

Boasting of the government agencies’ convergence in providing service and prompt action, based on the current State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Benigno Aquino III, inter-agency collaboration could hasten the resolution of these problems.

Hauri added that aside from attracting visitors to the Philippines, and pump priming the interest of domestic market to travel within the country, the DOT should also intensify and strengthen its policies on attracting tourism related investments to the Philippines.

“We, all engaged in the tourism industry, possess the same degree of optimism as our President. What differentiates will be the energy deployed behind the many efforts needed to get to the 10 million foreign travelers and development domestic market from 27 million to 30 million,” said Hauri.

The NTDP (National Tourism Development Plan) is the guiding document, the harmonization of the concept of PPP and LGU’s buying into tourism as a primary income source for their units are the medium to achieve the goal, he reiterated. — (FREEMAN)