Sara Duterte asks investors to back heritage, medical tourism

Vice President Sara Duterte urged tourism stakeholders on Friday to increase investments in sector-specific tourism amenities to “diversify the country’s opportunities and potentially increase industry revenue streams.”

“I enjoin our tourism stakeholders to work with other industry leaders to invest in medical tourism, heritage tourism, retirement havens, entertainment spots, open-space recreation, and more community-based travel destinations,” Duterte said during the Meetings, Incentive Travel, Conventions, and Exhibitions (MICE) Conference 2023 held in Davao City.

Duterte, who served as mayor of Davao City, shared how the city also hosted the MICECON event 10 years ago and reinforced Davao City’s position as a “major player and attractive destination in the conventions and exhibits industry.”

“For Davao City, being the host of this year’s MICECON 2023 is an opportunity to showcase one of the tourism gateways in Mindanao,” Duterte said, noting that she is honored and proud that Davao City is considered one of the safest cities in the world, offering visitors a “complete tourism experience” through the convergence of culture, nature, and adventure.

Moreover, the Vice President lauded the Department of Tourism (DOT) for boosting domestic tourism by opening “Tourism Circuits” and “Green Corridors” such as Davao, Clark, Bohol, and Puerto Princesa.

She said that a revitalized tourism industry would enable robust economic growth, increase the number of middle-income Filipinos, reduce poverty to 9%, and elevate the Philippines to an upper-middle-class economy.

“I look forward to the reemergence of a strong tourism sector in the country,” Duterte said.–Sherylin Untalan/LDF, GMA Integrated News