THE Department of Tourism (DOT) has announced that some 3,000 tourism industry workers in Boracay Island in Aklan are receiving vaccines against coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat and National Task Force (NTF) Against Covid-19 deputy chief implementer and testing czar Vince Dizon led the ceremonial vaccination on Wednesday, July 7.
Puyat, in a statement, said the inoculation program targets an initial 3,000 tourism workers in Western Visayas' top tourist destination.
Of the number, 2,178 are employed in accommodation establishments, 308 in restaurants and 140 in tourist transport.
Some 374, on the other hand, are tourism frontline personnel, including tour guides, boatmen, e-trike drivers, airport and seaport frontliners and aqua or water sports providers.
The workers were identified by the local government of Malay in coordination with the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI)-Boracay, and Boracay Foundation Incorporated.
To reach the target beneficiaries, at least 500 workers are expected to be inoculated daily.
Romulo-Puyat thanked Dizon and NTF chief implementer and vaccine czar Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr. and other members of the task force.
"As promised by Secretary Vince, continuous supply of the vaccine will come until we will be able to finally vaccinate the whole Boracay," she said, adding that "our dream of the travel bubble will then finally be realized."
The tourism chief said that the combined efforts of DOT, NTF, Provincial Government of Aklan, Municipal Government of Malay, PCCI-Boracay, Boracay Foundation Inc. and Compliance Association of Boracay to vaccinate tourism workers in the island marked the initial phase of the 100 percent vaccination target of all 40,000 residents and workers in the entire town.
Romulo-Puyat also lauded the Filinvest Hospitality through Crimson Resort and Spa Boracay for donating a total of 5,000 doses to support the initiative.
"We hope that others will continue this spirit of Bayanihan so more people in Boracay can get vaccinated faster," she said.
Understandably, among the top priorities for tourists traveling during this period are their health and safety, Romulo-Puyat underscored.
"One of the ways we can ensure this is by getting our frontliners vaccinated as soon as possible to give an extra layer of protection between them and our tourists," she added.
The official also announced that the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) has funded P10 million for the conduct of mass testing of tourism workers and frontliners in the island.
The DOT will also launch new tourism products for Boracay Island that are expected to attract more visitors.
These include Boracay Biking Tour that will showcase the scenic terrain of the island; Boracay Food Crawl, a deconstructed culinary experience which features the island's iconic and diverse cuisine; and the Boracay Wellness Workation Program, which seeks to repackage the island as an office space and ideal wellness retreat destination.
As of May 24 this year, meanwhile, a total of 11,459 tourism workers in Aklan, including Boracay Island, were approved to each receive the P5,000 cash assistance.
This is through the joint financial assistance program of the DOT and the Department of Labor and Employment.
The total worth of aid amounts to P57,295,000. (With reports from DOT-Western Visayas)