Palawan’s tourism stakeholders have urged the provincial government to undertake a package of initiatives to push the recovery of the sector which has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.
Members of the Palawan Tourism Council (PTC), appearing before the Sangguniang Panlalawigan on Tuesday, pushed for efforts that can boost domestic tourism in particular.
PTC president Rey Felix Rafols pushed that one recovery strategy is to showcase the province’s local products, stating that they have developed the concept of a “Bayani Basket” which is a promotion of Palawan’s well-known products.
“We came up with this idea, called the ‘Bayani Basket,’ which will showcase all of the best products of the different municipalities to be sold not only here in Palawan, but baka puwede natin ilabas sa probinsya natin,” Rafols said.
“Our target is one town, one product,” he added.
Rafols also added that more tourism owners and tourism government workers should join or collaborate with the PTC. He stated that membership growth would make data gathering better to assess the needs of tourism establishments in the province.
Rafols was joined by Provincial Tourism Development officer Maribel Buñi in presenting the various plans to restart tourism in Palawan.
Other recommendations discussed were cashless transactions, tax holidays for tourism establishments, utilizing a “tourism bubble,” and promoting domestic tourism.
