More than 95% of dive tourism workers already vaxxed vs COVID-19 — DOT

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MANILA, Philippines — More than 95 percent of tourism workers in dive establishments have already been vaccinated against COVID-19, the Department of Tourism (DOT) reported Friday.

Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat said 1,342 or 95.78 percent out of 1,401 employees of 105 dive establishments and liveaboard dive establishments that are accredited by the DOT’s Philippine Commission on Sports Scuba Diving (PCSSD) are now fully immunized against the coronavirus, with only 59 employees or 4.21 percent remaining unvaccinated.

Puyat noted that according to the PCSSD’s survey, unvaccinated tourism workers in dive destinations are either pregnant, with existing comorbidities, or are still unwilling to get vaccinated. Some tourism workers also missed vaccination appointments and are waiting for their preferred vaccine brands that are not available in their area, she added.

The tourism chief welcomed the development especially since the country is gearing towards the arrival of more tourists diving destinations.

“The DOT shall continue to work with other national and local government agencies as well as our stakeholders in the private sector to vaccinate all tourism workers in the country as soon as possible. Now that our borders are being eased to foreign visitors, it is imperative to protect our workforce against the virus,” Puyat said in a statement.

It can be recalled that the Philippines bagged the World Travel Awards (WTA) title as Asia’s Leading Dive Destination for the third consecutive year since 2019.

“With our recent win as Asia’s leading dive destination at the 28th World Travel Awards last October, we anticipate a good volume of foreign tourists returning to our dive spots in the coming months,” Puyat added.

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