By Hilda Austria/PNA
MALASIQUI, Pangasinan — The Department of Tourism (DOT) office in Region 1 (Ilocos) has asked local government units (LGUs) to strictly impose the mandatory accreditation for tourism hubs in their jurisdictions, along with other provisions of Republic Act 9593 or the Tourism Act.
DOT-1 regional director Martin Valera said the agency is geared towards having more accredited tourist facilities in the region this year, as supported by the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) through a memorandum circular issued to the LGUs.
Valera admitted that securing accurate tourist statistics in the region is still a challenge due to the non-compliance of establishments catering to tourists.
“Based from the data submitted to us, tourist arrivals in the region decreased to six percent last 2018 compared to 2017 figures (from 2.4 million in 2017 to more than 2.3 million in 2018). However, we cannot say this is accurate as some LGUs have not submitted their report on tourist arrivals in their area,” he explained in a phone interview Thursday.
Valera noted that getting an appropriate budget for promotion of tourism in the region is also a challenge since “less tourist arrival, less budget for promotion, considering the need to defend an allocation among 16 other regions based from the data”.
He also urged the LGUs to enforce the 35-meter high tide mark and sewerage system compliance of facilities along the coastal areas, especially that the region’s tourist spots are mostly beaches for sustainable tourism.
“Tourism development should be localized, LGUs should have their tourism development initiatives, whereas DOT is on the regulatory and promotion areas since we do not have police powers,” Valera said.
Meanwhile, aside from the accreditation, the DOT will focus on product development and training of people.
“We already have beautiful sites but we need to come up with activities. Region 1 can be a cultural destination, adventure tourism, eco-tourism, religious tourism, among others,” Valera said.
He added there will be more training for tourism-frontline workers.
“Tourism is tourism service industry and we need to work on dealing with different kinds of people and ensure to give them quality service,” Valera said.
