Friday, August 31, 2007 DOST office working on ecotourism project By Jane Cadalig
THE Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is working on a P97-million project for Cordillera's ecotourism areas.
DOST Regional Director Ben Ladilad said the project aims to further enhance the economy of the region's primary tourist destination areas, through science and technology intervention.
The towns of Sagada in Mountain Province and Banaue in Ifugao were chosen as pilot areas of the project.
Among the major technological interventions to be carried out is assistance for product upgrading through the improvement of production processes and packaging, among selected small and medium enterprises.
The project has eight major components, which includes, among others, the establishment of ethnic villages in selected sites, which showcase the various cultures and practices of indigenous peoples; development of online database for the two pilot areas; management of natural hazards, which include the development of research on the existing farming system in the Banaue Rice Terraces; and provision of research and development support.
Ladilad said the proposed three-year project has yet to get the nod of the DOST central office but initial consultations among concerned local government units have already been conducted.
"We want to create a favorable environment for ecotourism in the region. Funding for this program would initially come from the Philippine government and from linkages with other agencies," he said.
