THE PHILIPPINES is lagging behind most of its
neighbors in Southeast Asia in terms of its competitiveness as a tourism
destination, a recent report by the World Economic Forum (WEF) showed, citing
insufficiencies especially when it comes to business environment and
infrastructure.
This
despite government data showing an upward trend in tourist arrivals since last
year, with around four million visitors posted in 2011 and almost half a
million only for January this year.
Based
on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) "Travel and Tourism Competitiveness
Report 2012," the Philippines ranks seventh out of the eight ASEAN member
countries included in the report.
The
country was ranked only ahead of Cambodia but trailed behind Singapore,
Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei, Indonesia and Vietnam.
In ranking
the countries, WEF used three subindices that include several categories.
Under
the first subindex of travel and tourism regulatory framework, the categories
are policy rules and regulations; environmental sustainability; safety and
security; health and hygiene; and prioritization of travel and tourism.
In the
second subindex of business environment and infrastructure, the categories are
air and ground transport infrastructures; information and communication
technology infrastructure; and price competitiveness.
Under
the last subindex of human resources and natural resources are the affinity for
travel and tourism, natural resources and cultural resources.
The
Philippines lagged behind the most in the second subindex. In the price
competitiveness category, the country scored 5.2, higher than Singapore’s 5.1
rating. It was, however, offset by the ratings the Philippines got for the
other categories in that subindex, which ranged from 2.5 to 2.8.
Tourism
Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez, Jr. said "the figures are not consistent with
the continuous growth (average of 16%) of foreign tourist arrivals."
"Be that as it may, we are determined to improve country competitiveness
in all aspects," he said in a text message yesterday.
A. E.
Barrameda
Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Healthcare and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programmes. Many thanks for visiting www.yourvietnamexpert.com and/or contacting us at contact@yourvietnamexpert.com
No comments:
Post a Comment