Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco. (Image from liloan.gov.ph)
MANILA, Philippines — On her first day in office on Friday, Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia-Frasco made a commitment that her team would work to positively impact the overall tourism experience in the country for both domestic and foreign tourists.
“The goal is to improve the overall tourism experience by both domestic and foreign tourists so that they not only enjoy the idea of the brand that is the Philippines but fully immerse in and keep buying into the product that is our beautiful country and the work of its people,” Frasco said in a statement.
Frasco said there are two “essential building blocks” in sustainable tourism: Effective local government planning and implementation and shared tourism governance by the public and private sectors.
Effective planning and implementation on the local government side, she said, focuses on zoning and land use registrations, infrastructure development, and heritage and environmental protection.
“Effective planning and implementation on the Local Government side necessitates focus on zoning and land use regulations that enhances rather than degrades the long term value of tourist attractions, proactive and aggressive infrastructure development that provides quality access to roads, bridges, water systems, providing access to various methods of transportation by land, sea, and air, as well as heritage and environmental protection that ensures sustainable tourism development,” Frasco said, in relation to her experience as the mayor of Liloan in Cebu.
Frasco echoed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s vision to enhance infrastructure plans in the tourism industry.
Earlier, Frasco said she wants to bring Cebu’s Suroy-Suroy Sugbo to a national level, a program promoting lesser-known tourist destinations that started in 2005.
Frasco hopes that the Department of Tourism (DOT) can promote a collaborative approach to provide livelihood, employment, and business opportunities that will put “the success of every Filipino tourism stakeholder front and center of our agenda.”
“It is my hope that by building bridges of collaboration, we can generate boundless opportunities for livelihood, employment, and business that puts the success of every Filipino tourism stakeholder front and center of our agenda,” she said.
Frasco took her oath as tourism secretary during the oath-taking ceremony of Cabinet secretaries led by Marcos in Malacañang Palace on Thursday.
At the oath-taking, Frasco was accompanied by her mother Cebu Governor Gwendolyn Garcia, husband Cebu 5th District Rep. Duke Frasco, and sister Carissa Garcia.
Frasco served as mayor of Liloan town in Cebu from 2016 to 2022. She was also the spokesperson of Vice President Inday Sara Duterte. – Nicole Faye Agcaoili, INQUIRER.net trainee