TOURISM stakeholders in Negros Occidental are urged to integrate persons with disabilities (PWDs) in the industry by providing them a barrier-free environment.
Cristine Mansinares, provincial supervising tourism operations officer, on Tuesday said that local tourism establishments like pasalubong centers, hotels, restaurants, resorts, and heritage houses, among others, should provide a friendly environment to people with special needs.
Mansinares said that PWDs are another potential market that tourism industry players should look into.
“In tourism, we want to attract not only people who are able to walk, see, and hear but we also wanted to cater those with disabilities,” she added.
The importance of barrier-free tourism was underscored in a forum conducted at the GT Hotel in Bacolod City, which is one of the highlights of this year’s Provincial Tourism Week celebration.
The celebration, which has adopted the World Tourism Day theme “Tourism for All – Promoting Universal Accessibility,” runs from September 20 to 29.
Accessibility advocate Adela Kono from the Organization of Rehabilitative Advocates for Inclusion, who will also speak at the World Tourism Day celebration to be hosted by the Department of Tourism (DOT) in Manila on September 27, talked on “Best Practices on Building a Barrier-Free and Inclusive Tourism Environments in the Philippines.”
John Paul Maunes, an Ashoka fellow and co-founder of the Philippine Accessible Deaf Services, discussed the basic courtesies towards PWDs.
The forum was participated by local tourism officers, architects, social welfare and development officers as well as representatives from the Offices of Building Official, academe, and tourism councils.
Mansinares said there is a need to fully implement existing laws which provide PWDs the access to services and privileges.
“Barrier-free is a type of tourism that allows people to freely travel without obstruction in the physical environment and in the services extended to them,” she added.