NEDA opines regulating number of tourists in Boracay Island

Wednesday, October 31, 2018

The regional development unit of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) is of the opinion that the economy would benefit from regulating the number of tourists on the world-famous Boracay Island by expanding its tourism offerings.

NEDA Undersecretary for Regional Development Adoracion Navarro said that the overall strategy should not be about increasing the number of tourists entering the island, but rather, increasing revenues from each tourist while limiting mass tourism at the same time.

Navarro said, “I argued the economic impact of regulating the number of visitors and accommodations can still be net positive if the primary tourism strategy is to grow the tourism expenditure receipts per capita.”

Navarro opined that the island can produce higher revenue receipts by offering high-quality tourism services and diversifying services, including eco-tourism and cultural tourism activities.

“The number of accommodations must be guided by the carrying capacity of the island. Because the Boracay experience can be felt by people by proper scheduling, hindi sabay-sabay (not at the same time),” Navarro said.

Navarro added that there should be a high price for high-quality tourism goods and services, and also a low price for low-quality ones, to bring in maximum revenues.

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