DEKADA

THE 10 YEARS OF PHILIPPINE TOURISM 2010-2020

What really happened in the past decade regarding the current state of our tourism industry?

Tourism is now one of the country’s major revenue generators, a catalyst for socio-
economic growth and a source of national pride.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) commemorates the 10th year since Republic Act
9593, better known as the Tourism Act of 2009, was signed into law. Enacted on May 12, 2009,
by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in Cebu City, R.A. 9593 recognized tourism as an
indispensable element of the national economy and an industry of national interest and
importance. Tourism is now a major revenue generator, a catalyst for socio-economic growth
and a source of national pride.

In 2017, the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that the sector contributed 12.2% to
the country’s GDP, equivalent to PHP 1.929 trillion. This is a huge leap compared to PHP 466
billion in 2009 (or 5.8% of the GDP). Tourist arrivals have grown as well. In 2018, the
Philippines welcomed 7.1 million international visitors compared to 2009 when there were only 3
million foreign arrivals.

Another indicator of the rise of the Philippine tourism industry is the number of jobs it has
created in the last decade. By 2017, 13.1% of total employment—5.3 million jobs—were directly
attributed to the tourism sector, compared to only 3.9 million in 2009, before the full
implementation of the law.

This can be use as a driving force for every Filipino, to strive harder and work always for
the better. We should always propel ourselves and the whole nation towards growth and
prosperity. It is surely a wonderful decade for the Filipinos as we all witnessed the growth of the
industry and how it transformed lives and the communities in the Philippines.

The booming travel and tourism sector is currently driving the growth of many industries,
including real estate as the influx of foreign and domestic travelers pushed the demand for new
hotels and resort projects.
 In the past decade, we are able to maximize the full capacity of the potential of our
tourism sector but there are still a lot of things to improve on and we should help one another in
maximizing this opportunity and chance for growth of the Philippine economy.

The positive growth of the tourism industry today is because of the innovations of the
Tourism Act of 2009. The law has enabled the nation to develop the sector to provide inclusive
growth to communities all over the country,” said Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary
Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.