REPRESENTATIVES from the private sector and the government are pushing for rural development and tourism in the countryside where “the potential is, and the raw materials and (poor) people are.”
National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) 7 Assistant Regional Director Efren Carreon urged rural tourism projects, such as the Suroy-Suroy Sugbo project of Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia, to tie up with livelihood programs like the One Town, One Product of the Department of Trade and Industry.
This will not only boost tourism but also provide income to poor families whose members would venture to urban centers to look for work, he said in yesterday’s 888 News Forum at the Waterfront Cebu City Hotel and Casino.
More arrivals
Neda reported an 8.7-percent increase in domestic tourist arrivals and an 11-percent in foreign tourist arrivals in Central Visayas for the first quarter of this year against the same period in 2007.
University of San Carlos economics professor Fernando Fajardo, for his part, lauded the Suroy-Suroy Sugbo but lamented that it is a “government initiative” that is “artificial (since) the preparation is orchestrated by the town mayors.”
“Take the governor away from the Suroy-Suroy and I don’t think that tourists will be met with an equally warm welcome.
Real tourism means that a foreigner comes to Cebu and rides a bus to Oslob or Boljoon without the government guiding them what to see,” he said.
He also asked if the Capitol-initiated tour has resulted in private-led initiatives, such as the improvement of public toilets that would further improve rural tourism.
He cited a public toilet in Barangay Talaga in Argao town that is used by passengers of buses from Negros Oriental.
“For ordinary Cebuanos, the sight of holes and garbage around the public toilet maybe okay. Some of them would urinate anywhere during stopovers. But for foreign tourists, it’s not a beauty to see,” Fajardo said.
After the forum, Robert Lim Joseph, chairman of the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies–Philippines Inc. (Naitas), asked Fajardo to provide the estimated cost of renovating public toilets. Joseph also pledged P50,000 for the project. (NRC)
