National Tourism Policy of Philippines: Evaluation Report

This report delves into the tourism sector of the Philippines, assessing the impact of tourism on the nation's economy, considering its benefits like revenue generation, foreign currency reserves, employment opportunities, and environmental sustainability. The research employs PESTEL and Porter's Five Forces analyses to scrutinize external and competitive factors influencing the industry. The report evaluates the existing national tourism policy, its strengths, weaknesses, and value for tourism business development. It also provides recommendations for strategic improvements, including identifying areas for development, suggesting infrastructure enhancements, and specifying key programs and resource requirements to achieve the country's tourism vision. The analysis is based on the National Tourism Development Plan 2016-2022 and other relevant data sources.

Running head: TOURISM IN PHILIPPINES
Tourism in Philippines
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note:

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1. Executive Summary:
The report below shows the importance of tourism development in the underdeveloped nations
like Philippines. Nations like Philippines which are still shifting from largely agriculture based
economies to industrialised ones, can utilise tourism to bring about economic development. This
is because tourism attracts foreign reserve which can be used to import goods till the
manufacturing sectors of the countries gain sufficient robustness to meet the needs of the
countries. However, in the absence of industrial development, the tourism sector in nations like
Philippines remain largely dependent on foreign markets. This impairs the development of the
resident tourism firms, ultimately weakening the development of the tourism market on the
whole. The government should take strong steps to develop the countries economically and boost
the development of the tourism market in the country.

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Table of Contents
1. Executive Summary:................................................................................................................1
2. Introduction:............................................................................................................................4
2.1. Context of the research:........................................................................................................4
2.2. Aim of the report:.................................................................................................................5
2.3. Structure:...............................................................................................................................5
3. Destination profile for Philippines:.........................................................................................6
4. Main body:...............................................................................................................................6
4.1.1. About Philippines:.............................................................................................................6
4.1.2. Impact of tourism on the economy of Philippines:............................................................8
Generation of revenue:................................................................................................................8
Earner of foreign currency reserves:............................................................................................9
Generation of employment and economic development among the local communities:..........10
Promotes environmental sustainability in Philippines:..............................................................10
4.2. External factors effecting tourism industry in Philippines (PESTEL):..............................12
4.2.1. Political factors:...............................................................................................................12
Political stability:...................................................................................................................12
Bilateral relationships of the government of Philippines:.....................................................13
4.2.2. Economic factors:............................................................................................................14
Gross Domestic Product or GDP:..........................................................................................14

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Foreign exchange rates:.........................................................................................................15
4.2.3. Social factors:..................................................................................................................16
4.2.4. Technological factors:.....................................................................................................17
4.2.5. Environmental factors:.....................................................................................................18
4.2.6 Legal factors:....................................................................................................................18
Corruption:.............................................................................................................................18
Laws regarding the tourism industry:....................................................................................19
4.3. Porter’s Five Forces analysis of Philippines’s tourism industry:.......................................19
4.3.1. Threats of new entrants:...................................................................................................19
4.3.2. Bargaining power of buyers:...........................................................................................19
4.3.4. Bargaining powers of suppliers:......................................................................................20
4.3.5. Threats of substitutes:......................................................................................................20
4.3.6. Threats of rivals:..............................................................................................................20
4.3. Analysis of the findings:.....................................................................................................21
Evaluation of comprehensive plan and its value for tourism business development:...................22
Strategies (Strategy proposals and directions) to develop a chosen tourism destination-
Philippines:....................................................................................................................................22
Identify areas for tourism development, related tourism facilities and supporting infrastructure:23
Specify the major programs, roles and responsibilities of key players, institutional arrangements
and resource requirements for achieving the vision......................................................................23

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5. Conclusion:............................................................................................................................23
6. Recommendations:................................................................................................................24
References:................................................................................................................................25
Appendix:..................................................................................................................................30
2. Introduction:
2.1. Context of the research:
Tourism is one the most impost important service sector industry in the world. The
global tourism industry has surpassed a value of US$ 8.27 trillion (Prnewswire.com. 2019). The
tourism industry is responsible for ushering several benefits in the economies concerned like
generation of revenue, foreign reserve, tax income and employment generation. The industry is
credited for generation of as high as 5% of the GDPs of developed markets like Spain (Bruce-
Lockhart 2019). The emerging economic giants like India and Brazil have already gained strong
competitive advantages in the industry owing to factors like rich natural resources and culture
(Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 2019). The industry is even capable of boosting economic growth
in the less developed countries like Philippines. As per an article released by the Philippines
News Agency, Republic of Philippines in 2019, tourism alone contributed to about 12.7% of the
country’s GDP in 2018 (Pna.gov.ph. 2019). This release clearly indicates the importance of
tourism in the economic development of countries and the global economic development in
totality. That is why governments of various countries form plans to promote their respective
tourism industry. For example, the Government of Philippines, in order to promote the tourism

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sector in the country and reap the economic development from it has formed The National
Tourism Development Plan 2016-2022 (Tourism.gov.ph. 2020).
2.2. Aim of the report:
The aim of the report would be exploring the impact of the tourism on the economy of
Philippines and the factors impacting it.
2.3. Structure:
The research would be inspired to a great extent from The National Tourism
Development Plan 2016-2022prepared by the Department of Tourism, Republic of the
Philippines and destination profile map shown in the report. The crux of the research would be
divided into two main parts namely, impacts of tourism on the economy of Philippines and
factors affecting the industry. The analysis of the factors affecting tourism in Philippines would
be divided into two parts, namely PESTEL analysis and the Porter’s five forces analysis. The
findings from these analyses would be further dissected to present recommendations for further
improvement in the tourism industry in Philippines. However, prior to embarking on the
research, it would be noteworthy to gain some basic ideas about the country Philippines.

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3. Destination profile for Philippines:
Destination profile for Philippines
Name of Destination Philippines
Capital City Manila
Population size 100 million(approx)
Language(s) spoken English and Filipinos
Currency PHP
Composition of the hospitality market International brands like Hilton Worldwide have already arrived at
the market
Major tourist attractions
islands like Batanes (indicated as NP1 on the map of The National
Tourism Development Plan 2016-2022), beaches and heritage sites
(like Ilocos region marked as NP2 in the The National Tourism
Development Plan 2016-2022)
Tourist seasons (Seasonality) January highest, September lowest
Tourist Data https://www.dti.gov.ph/resources/statistics/tourist-arrivals
4. Main body:
4.1.1. About Philippines:
Philippines is an island country located in the Pacific Ocean. The area of the country is
3000000 km2and its population of 100 million. The country is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire
which is extremely prone to volcanic activities and earthquakes. The country once mainly an
agriculture based economy, has started manufacturing products like electronic goods and
transport equipment. However, the country is still dependent on imports for basic requirements
like iron and steel, so important for development of the tourism infrastructure (Psa.gov.ph.
2020). The graph below shows that the exports of the country showed a sharp decline while its
imports increased in May 2019. This actually points out to the lack of development in the
industries like IT and iron and steel industries in the country which in return results in lower
GDP. The tourism in the country aids in raising the GDP in the country by contributing to as
high as 12.7% (Pna.gov.ph. 2019). The main offerings of the tourism sector in Philippines are

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islands like Batanes (indicated as NP1 on the map of The National Tourism Development Plan
2016-2022), beaches and heritage sites (like Ilocos region marked as NP2 in the The National
Tourism Development Plan 2016-2022) (Tourism.gov.ph. 2020). However, the tourism
industry in Philippines in spite of its immense offerings in terms of tourists attractions, faces
severe competition from other nations, many of which are either developed or emerging boasting
massive tourism industries of their own. For example, Philippines faces competition from
markets like the United States of America, India, Japan and China, all of which are far more
developed and capable of supporting robust tourism industries (Prnewswire.com. 2019).
Philippines faces several environmental issues like destruction of wildlife and illegal trading of
animal parts (Environews.ph. 2020). These environmental issues would be detrimental to be
tourism in the country and the economic development of the country on the whole.
Figure 1. Graph showing import and export of Philippines
(Source: Psa.gov.ph. 2020)

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4.1.2. Impact of tourism on the economy of Philippines:
Tourism has immense impacts on the economy of Philippines. The importance of tourism
on the economic development of Philippines can be gauged from the fact that the industry alone
generated 12.7% of the GDP of the country in 2018 (Pna.gov.ph. 2019). Moreover, the country
of Philippines does not experience a very strong and productive manufacturing sector. This
makes the country dependent on imports of goods from foreign markets which in turn erodes the
foreign reserve of the country (Psa.gov.ph. 2020). Tourism to a great extent enables the
government in earning foreign exchange, thus indirectly facilitating import of the basic
infrastructural necessities like iron and steel. The following are the main impacts of tourism
which the country of Philippines experiences:
Generation of revenue:
The first impact which tourism has on the economy of Philippines is that it generates
revenue for the country, both in form of foreign reserve and the national currency of the country
namely, Philippine peso, abbreviated as PHP. The graph below shows that in 2018 alone,
Philippines received around 7 million tourists from abroad. The Department of Tourism,
Republic of Philippines reported that in tourism generated a revenue of PHP 245 billion received
from international tourists in first half of 2019 alone (Tourism.gov.ph. 2020). Thus, one can
establish on the basis of this fact that tourism results in generation of immense amount revenue
which also includes receipts in foreign currencies.

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Figure 2. Graph showing main countries contributing tourists in Philippines
(Source:Dti.gov.ph. 2020)
Earner of foreign currency reserves:
The tourism industry is contributes to the foreign currency reserves in Philippines.
Febrero, Uxó and Bermejo(2018) mentions that foreign currency reserves held by countries have
several benefits. First of all, holding foreign currency reserves enable the countries to stabilize
the value of their local currencies. For example, the Government of Philippines is able to
stabilize the value of PHP by holding foreign reserves. Moreover, the country is heavily
dependent on imports of even the basic goods like iron and steel from other countries
(Psa.gov.ph. 2020). Thus, foreign currencies enable the countries to pay off their debts earned on
importing foreign goods (Kohler 2017). As far as Philippines is concerned, one can point out that
the country can use foreign exchange reserves earned from tourism to pay the foreign suppliers
of the imported goods. Thus, in other words, tourism enables Philippines earn foreign reserve
which in turn facilitate imports.

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Generation of employment and economic development among the local communities:
Tourism results in economic development among the local communities in Philippines.
As per the reports published by the World Bank. Philippines faced economic downturn in the
first half of 2019. The government of the country was compelled to cancel several developmental
plans. The economy is expected to recover in 2020 and 2021 from the economic slowdown
(Worldbank.org. 2019). Economic slowdown also means that there rate of employment
generated in the economy also fell. Tourism can prove to be a sustainable source of employment
among the local communities, thus enabling them to earn their living and improve their standards
of life (Mubangizi and Mwesigwa 2019). As far as tourism in Philippines is concerned, the
country provides an array of tourism products like nature based tourism and cultural tourism
(Tourism.gov.ph. 2020). The local people can obtain employment as tour guides in the tourism
business firms. Similarly, increase in the number of tourists in Philippines would create demand
for facilities like hotels, restaurants and bars to serve these tourists (Hampton, Jeyacheya and
Long 2018). The existing hotels and restaurants would employ more employees in Philippines
which would bring about increase in the rate of employment. Similarly, new facilities like hotels
in the country would create new employment opportunities. Thus, growth in tourism would bring
about growth in the local communities by creating employment opportunities for them both in
the tourism industry and in related industries like hospitality.
Promotes environmental sustainability in Philippines:
Tourism encourages environmental sustainability in Philippines. One can point out that
tourism in Philippines is largely based on nature which means that sustainability of natural
environment is extremely important for tourism in the country. Thus, in other words economic
development of Philippines which is dependent on the tourism industry to a great extent is

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dependent on natural environment sustainability(Tourism.gov.ph. 2020). However,
environmental issues like destruction of wildlife would devastate tourism in Philippines and the
economic benefits the country derives from it like generation of foreign reserves
(Environews.ph. 2020). However, environmental sustainability strategies like restoration of
water reserves are extremely expensive in terms of implementation and monitoring (Collins and
Kumral 2019). Tourism promotes environmental sustainability in Philippines. This is because
growth of tourism in the country boosts growth of hotel industry in the country to provide
accommodation as well as food to the tourists. This development of these two industries attract
multinational hospitality companies which promote environmental sustainability as a part of their
respective CSR. For example, Hilton Manila, the Philippine arm of Hilton Worldwide has
adopted strategies like ‘No Plastic’ to reduce its waste generation while operating in the country
(Newsroom.hilton.com. 2020). These sustainability strategies would contribute towards
environmental sustainability in Philippines. Thus, in other words tourism contributes towards
environmental sustainability in Philippines.
The tourism in Philippines ushers several benefits and challenges (negatives) of strategic
destination management. Strategic destination management refers to coordinated maintenance of
the tourist destinations like Philippines to attract and cater to the tourists (Unwto.org. 2020). As
far as Philippines is concerned, tourism is one of the major industries and earner of foreign
exchange. One can also point out that the main tourist destinations of the country are centred on
sea beaches, hills and mountains. Thus, the government of the country and the firms involved in
tourism have to ensure proper maintenance of these destinations in order to ensure satisfaction of
tourists. Thus, the benefit of strategic destination management in the country ultimately
translates in sustainable maintenance of the places which are environmentally very fragile like

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sea beaches and hills. Thus, tourism actually encourages environmental sustainability in the
country. The limitations or negative aspects of strategic destination management is that it
requires immense capital expenditure to acquire manpower, requires acquisition of modern
environment friendly technology and immense knowledge. Poor nations like Philippines usually
cannot afford to acquire these resources.
4.2. External factors effecting tourism industry in Philippines (PESTEL):
The following are the external factors which affect the tourism industry in Philippines:
4.2.1. Political factors:
The following are the political factors which affects the tourism industry in Philippines:
Political stability:
Political stability plays a very important role in the operations of the tourism industry.
The tourism industry in Philippines impacts several important areas of the economic
development in the country like creation of employment and generation of foreign reserves (Uxó
and Bermejo 2018). That is why the formation of policies in the tourism industry as well as
measurement of the performances of the industry come under the purview of several government
bodies and departments. For example, Department of Tourism, Republic of Philippines and
Department of Trade and Industry both govern the operations of the tourism industry. One can
establish on the basis of this discussion that political stability would have direction implications
on the tourism industry (Ft.com. 2016). This is because lack of political stability would lead to
conflict of interests between the departments forming strategies and policies pertaining to the
Philippine tourism sector. This would lead to inaccurate implementation of policies in the
tourism industry which would ultimately create problems for the tourists like hindrance in
smooth immigration and emigration. This would ultimately have negative impact on the tourists

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and repel them from visiting the country (Meyer 2018). Moreover, lack of political stability
could attract political threats like terrorism, further undermining the security of the country
(Sönmez and Sönmez 2019). Thus, one can infer from the discussion that political stability in
Philippines has very significant impacts on the tourism industry in the country.
Bilateral relationships of the government of Philippines:
The bilateral relationships which the Government of Philippines have with foreign
countries directly impact the tourism in the country. Bilateral relationships between nations
enable enable firms situated in one country get access to the market situated in the other
country(s). The firms resident to one county are able to market their products in the countries
with which their home country has strong ties (Balli, Balli and Louis 2016). For example,
tourism firms based in Philippines are able to market their products in markets like the US which
enables them to attract tourists (customers) from the latter. This evident from the fact the the
Government of Philippines shares strong bilateral relationship with Washington D.C. (State.gov.
2020). Similarly, the government of the country shares strong relationship with the governments
of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland (Philembassy.no. 2020). Bilateral relationships with
these EU nations enables the Philippines attract tourists from them as well. However,
deteriorating political relationships between trading partners would have negative effects on the
tourism industry of Philippines For example, Philippines and South Korea are slowly shifting
their support towards the United States of America since they ‘feel threatened’ owing to the
growing power of China in the East Pacific region (Jennings 2019). Considering the fact that
South Korea, China and the US are the three largest contributors of tourists in Philippines, the
country would have to cede Chinese tourists if it leans towards the US (Dti.gov.ph. 2020). Thus,

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one can establish in the light of this analysis of facts that the tourism industry in Philippines is
heavily dependent on bilateral relationships.
4.2.2. Economic factors:
The following are the economic factors which impact the tourism industry in Philippines:
Gross Domestic Product or GDP:
The gross domestic product has impacts on the tourism industry of Philippines. The
country is experiencing an increase in GDP as shown in the graph. Lawal and Ezeuchenne
(2017) mentions that increase in the production of finished goods enables nations to increase
their GDP. In other words, nations with increasing GDP are able to export more products to
generate foreign exchange rates. Thus, lower GDP shows lower productivity of finished goods in
the country which actually points out to the lack of development in the manufacturing sector in
the country concerned. This fact holds very true for Philippines as the country suffers from an
underdeveloped manufacturing sector. This fact can be ratified by the fact that the country is
heavily dependent on imports (Psa.gov.ph. 2020). The lack of development in the primary
sectors like civil engineering has impeded the growth of the tourism sector in the country to a
great extent.

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Figure 3. GDP of Philippines
(Source:Tradingeconomics.com. 2020)
Foreign exchange rates:
The tourism sector in Philippines is heavily impacted by the shifts in the international
foreign currency exchange rates. The tourism industry in Philippines is heavily dependent on
foreign exchanges since majority of the tourists originate from foreign countries like the USA.
The graph below shows that exchange rate of USD against PHP. It shows that USD weakened
prior to 2016 but has gained strength. USD in general holds stronger position compared to PHP.
The position of PHP on the contrary is strengthening against CNY. This means that tourism
firms based in Philippines would gain higher revenue by serving American tourists compared to
Chinese tourists. The country on the contrary acquire resources like iron and steel from China
instead of the USA. Thus, it can be established that the Philippine tourism industry is heavily

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dependent of value of PHP in the international currency market in comparison to international
currencies.
Figure 4. Graph showing exchange rate changes between USD and CNY against PHP
(Source: Bloomberg.com. 2020)
4.2.3. Social factors:
The tourism market in Philippines is heavily dependent on the social factors. Badran and
Khalifa(2016) mention that tourists today expect the staff operating in the tourism industry
acknowledge their cultural background. Diversity management and cultural intelligence has
emerged as one of driving social aspect in the tourism industry. As far as the tourism industry in
Philippines is concerned, most of the tourists come from the US, China and South Korea. As far
as cultural aspects are concerned, Philippines exhibit some attributes like power distance similar
to China whereas in case of other attributes like long term orientation, the country is closer to the
USA. This means that staff operating in the tourism industry have to have knowledge about the

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different cultures like American and Chinese so as to conduct appropriate with tourists coming
from different countries.
Figure 5. Country comparison between the USA, Philippines and China
(Source:Hofstede-insights.com. 2020)
4.2.4. Technological factors:
The tourism industry in Philippines is heavily dependent on technological advancements.
This is because, right from tourist apps to GPS maps which tourists can use to reach places, the
industry is heavily dependent on technology. However, as far as the country is concerned, one
can point that it is dependent on technological imports from other nations (Psa.gov.ph. 2020).
Thus, the tourism industry in Philippines is still very dependent on foreign market to provide it
with technological support in terms of even the basic infrastructure like road and transportation
development.

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4.2.5. Environmental factors:
The environmental factors have heavy impact on the tourism industry of Philippines.
First of all, the country sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire which is extremely prone to earthquakes
and volcanoes. Thus, sudden changes in the environmental conditions like earthquakes can pose
danger to the security of the tourists (Achenbach 2020). One can establish that the tourism
industry in the country is largely dependent on natural features like beaches and forests
(Tourism.gov.ph. 2020). Thus, degeneration of these features owing to irresponsible human
action like unplanned construction work would harm the tourism industry.
4.2.6 Legal factors:
The following are the legal factors which impact the tourism industry in Philippines:
Corruption:
Corruption is one of the most important legal factors which affect the tourism sector in
Philippines. Corruption leads to breach of contracts and ultimately trustin between the different
stakeholders in the tourism industry like the tourists (consumers), government and the tourism
companies (Pardo 2018). For example, the tourism firms may overcharge the tourists and the
government may not take any steps against the companies concerned. Corruption prevents the
ability of governments in curbing crimes like kidnapping. Increasing levels of corruption in the
tourist destination countries like Philippines raises concern among the countries of origin of the
tourists like the US. The governments of these countries warn tourists against visiting such
countries (Travel.state.gov. 2019). These warnings of the home country government (like USA)
deter tourists from visiting the countries against which the warnings have been issued like
Philippines. Decrease in the numbers of inflow of tourists results in decrease in the revenue
generation in the Philippine tourism industry which ultimately affects the economy of the

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country. Philippines remains to be one of the most corrupted Asian nations with a score of 36 in
2019 (Cnnphilippines.com. 2020). Thus, it transpires from the discussion that corruption would
have devastating impact on the tourism and consequent economic development in Philippines.
Laws regarding the tourism industry:
The tourism industry in Philippines is governed by several laws. The tourism sector of
the country is governed by Tourism Act of 2009. (Tourism.gov.ph. 2020). The Consumer Act
of the Philippines (RA 7394)seeks to protect the consumers from fraudulent trade practices like
misrepresentation of materials facts by companies to persuade them to purchase the products
concerned (Sec.gov.ph. 2018). As far as tourism industry is concerned, the tourists are the
consumers to the tourism firms. Thus, in other words, the tourism companies operating in
Philippines should abstain from adopting unethical means like charging illegitimately high prices
for tourism packages while serving tourists.
4.3. Porter’s Five Forces analysis of Philippines’s tourism industry:
4.3.1. Threats of new entrants:
The tourism industry in Philippines experiences severe threats from new entrant firms.
The existing firms in the market face stiff competition from newly entering firms. For example,
Thomas Cook is an existing firm in the tourism market in Philippines (Thomascook.in. 2020).
The firm is facing challenges from more innovative and newly entering firms like Trivago
(Trivago.com.ph. 2020). This threat from new entrants has made the tourism market in
Philippines extremely competitive.
4.3.2. Bargaining power of buyers:
The tourists in Philippines enjoy high bargaining power. This is because the customers
today can purchase tourism packages from a large number of tourism companies. The customers

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today in order to purchase tourism packages simply request to down apps on their smart phones.
They can opt for international companies like Trivago or local tourism firms. Thus, individual
tourism firms have very little control on the bargaining power of the consumers.
4.3.4. Bargaining powers of suppliers:
The bargaining powers of the suppliers in the tourism market in Philippines is very high.
The tourism industry firms require to acquire resources like software and apps from other
industries like information and communication industry firms. However, Philippines is not
industrially strong and thus, lack advancements in fields like ICT. The tourism firms in the
country are thus dependent on suppliers of inventory like software from foreign firms. Thus, it
can be established that bargaining powers of suppliers in the tourism market of Philippines is
extremely high.
4.3.5. Threats of substitutes:
The tourism market of Philippines faces no threat of substitutes. This is because other
forms of pastime like watching films and sports cannot engage the consumers for prolonged time
periods like weeks. Hence, the tourism market of Philippines faces low levels of threats of
substitutes.
4.3.6. Threats of rivals:
The threats of rivals in the tourism market in Philippines is extremely high. This is
because the tourism industry in Philippines is supported by an economy which is still
underdeveloped and dependent on imports of even the basic infrastructural items like iron and
steel (Psa.gov.ph. 2020). Its country in order to protect its position in the East Pacific region, has
to depend on nations like the USA which demeans its position in the international platform
(Jennings 2019). The emerging markets like India on the other hand are far more economically

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strong. These nations are way ahead in terms of infrastructure like roads and ICT. The country is
rich in natural resources like sea beaches and wildlife (Tourism.gov.in. 2020). It can offer more
products to tourists compared to the weak Philippine economy. In fact, India receives tourists
from markets like the US, Canada, the UK and the EU (Vinayak 2019). The tourist base of
Philippines on the other hand is largely dependent on nations like China, South Korea and
Malaysia. Thus, one can point out that currencies of the main customer nations of the Indian
tourism sector like the US and Canada enjoy stronger positions compared to the main customer
nations of the Philippine tourism market like South Korea and China. Thus, rival markets like
India are capable generating more revenue, both in the form of national currency and foreign
reserve.
4.3. Analysis of the findings:
The analysis conducted above leads to several findings about the tourism market in
Philippines. First of all, the tourism market in Philippines plays a very significant role in
economic development of the country and accounts for around 12% of the GDP of the country.
The second finding is that the owing is dependent heavily on the import of even the basic goods.
This huge amount of import erodes the foreign reserve. The third finding is that the country is
industrially so weak that it is dependent on foreign markets for even the basic supplies like iron
and steel. The fifth finding is that the macroeconomic conditions of the country are suffering due
to issues like corruption and fear of dominance by foreign nations like China. The Philippine
tourism sector in the country remains weak compared to its foreign counterparts like Indian
tourism industry largely owing to the economic backwardness in Philippines.

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Evaluation of comprehensive plan and its value for tourism business development:
Comprehensive plan enables the government of countries to form strategies to involve
stakeholders like tourism firms and even other industries to develop the tourism infrastructure of
the country to attract tourists. For example, as far as Philippines is concerned, the country is
weak in terms of basic infrastructure and is dependent on import (Psa.gov.ph. 2020). The
government of the country forms strategies which enable it to import basic materials like iron
and steel to build infrastructure like roads. Construction of infrastructure enables the government
of the country attract tourism firms to develop destinations and properties to serve tourists
(Tourism.gov.ph. 2020). Thus, one can establish that forming comprehensive plans enable the
government of Philippines develop tourism industry in the country and attract tourists to generate
revenue from them or in other words create value.
Strategies (Strategy proposals and directions) to develop a chosen tourism destination-
Philippines:
The Government of Philippines should form strategies which would direct the
development of tourism in Philippines. First, the government should emphasise on building the
basic infrastructural industries like construction, civil engineering and food industries. This
would enable the country to save the revenue it otherwise spends to import the basic necessities
like iron, steel and food. The government should divert this revenue saved to develop tourist
destinations. The government should open educational institutes to provide education on tourism
to provide the industry with qualified personnel. These directions would enable the development
of the tourism destination of Philippines.

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Identify areas for tourism development, related tourism facilities and supporting
infrastructure:
As far as the tourism sector in Philippines is concerned, the discussion above shows that
there are several areas of tourism which have to be developed. First of all, the country requires
overall strengthening of the economy and its infrastructure like roads in order to develop its
tourism. The government should also provide related tourism facilities like provision of
government lodges and set up tourism training institutes.
Specify the major programs, roles and responsibilities of key players, institutional
arrangements and resource requirements for achieving the vision.
The major programmes in development of tourism in Philippines would include
development of the basic infrastructure and gradual development of tourism facilities. The main
players in the development would be the government and the tourism firms. The government is
responsible for forming the laws and policies while the firms involved in the tourism are
responsible for providing resources like hotels, food and transportation facilities to tourists. The
government of the country should set up institutional arrangements like setting up tourism
colleges and supporting tourism bodies to promote tourism in the country. The main resources
required to develop tourism would be financial capital, manpower, knowledge capital and
technological capital.
5. Conclusion:
One can conclude from the analysis Philippine tourism sector has immense potential to
grow to strengthen the economy. However, the sector suffers owing to the lack of industrial
development of in the infrastructural sector like road. The country is industrially weak and
heavily depends on imports. This makes the country subject to dominance of some of its trading

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partners like China. This tourism sector in the country in the same way is largely dominated by
foreign tourists, once again making the country heavily dependent on foreign markets. Thus, it
comes to the forefront from the discussion that the government should take strong steps to
strengthen the tourism sector in Philippines and the economy as whole.
6. Recommendations:
The two recommendations which could be presented before the Philippine government is
that it should form policies to bring about industrial development in the country and encourage
resident tourism firms to expand their business. Bringing about industrial development would
lower the import of Philippines, thus lowering the dependence of the country on foreign markets.
This would gradually strengthen the diplomatic power of Philippines which would enable its
resident tourism firms to access to more foreign resources. Similarly, encouraging resident
tourism firms to expand their business would boost revenue generation in the Philippine tourism
industry.

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References:
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Appendix:
Appendix 1. Tourism cluster destinations: