TO promote and support the products of former rebels in the Davao Region, the Department of Tourism Davao Region (DOT-Davao) said they will tie up with the hotels in Davao City.
“Isa talaga sana yan sa gusto nating i-push (We want to push this program) while they are still here in the comforts ng city. Natutulongan din kahit andon sila sa malalayo (We will also be able to help them even if they are far from the city),” Tanya Rabat-Tan, DOT-Davao regional director, said in an interview during the Kaon ta, Kain pa Press Conference on December 2, 2022.
She said they already visited the areas which were recently under insurgency and assessed how they can support the former rebels.
“What we want sana is to work with DTI and in fact may initial na tayo na programa for this, since they are not tourism ready yet, then probably ‘yong mga products nalang nila (We want to work with DTI, and since they are not tourism-ready yet, then probably we will work on their products first),” Tan said.
She said they already gathered data to come up with a program that could help the former rebels in promoting their products.
“We already ask about the data ng lahat ng communities and their products. We also have to do something like this (Kaon ta, Kain pa!) to showcase their products,” Tan said.
She added that in Paquibato District they have seen several products that can be promoted through DOT and linked to accommodation facilities.
“We are committed doon sa ating ELCAC (End Local Communist Armed Conflict), kailangang matulongan sila (we need to help them), but we noticed most of them were not really tourism-ready yet,” Tan said.
Tan said it's hard for them to conduct training if no product will be promoted.
However, she said they already conducted tour guide training for the wives of the former rebels in Mainit, Nabunturan, Davao de Oro in partnership with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). KSD