Getting our tourism act together

GETTING our act together should be the driving force in a reboot after Covid-19. And that means from regulations to service to infrastructure. Regulations would mean tourism standards that cover not just the elite destinations but also the eco-tours we have plenty of. Just imagine 81 provinces as tourism hubs or around 7,640 islands, about 2,000 of which are inhabited, that form the archipelago of our nation. Service covers the experience of people traveling from international countries or domestic tourists going places in the country. Service will also include frontline services — immigration, airports, terminals, buses, trains, RoRos, and even the uniquely positioned habal-habal, police, barangay, etc.

"We give the world our best" is not a country brand if we are further commodifying Filipino labor which has resulted in brain drain, broken family ties and a generation of kids growing up without a sense of family. Yes, it is a problem that the country cannot give its best the salary they deserve and the benefits they need so that home is the Philippines. But we have gone far to debate overseas employment and building an economy where our graduates can grow and mature to be decent law-abiding citizens. More and more we talk of reintegration.