02 JANUARY 2005

The Department of Tourism (DOT) has reported that it had posted a remarkable growth of 24.3 percent in visitor arrivals from January 1 to October 31, 2004.

In its Annual Accomplishment Report submitted to Malacanang, the DOT said the increase in tourist arrivals to 1.861 million during the 10-month period can be attributed to the influx of inter-regional travelers from Asia, such as Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, China and Malaysia.

Visitors from these countries accounted for 964,404 arrivals, representing a 51.81 percent of the total visitor traffic to the Philippines.

The DOT said that the North American, Western Europe and Australia/Pacific Regions also exhibited positive growths of 29.2 percent, 21.9 percent, and 28.0 percent, respectively.

The DOT said the increase can also be attributed to the aggressive marketing efforts of the DOT and the stronger support of the private sector and international organizations as well as the improving peace and order and political stability in the country.

The US market continued to supply the biggest number of visitors to the Philippines, accounting for 20.9 percent of the visitor traffic, the DOT said.

Arrivals from Australia, Taiwan, Canada, Korea, and China also increased, the DOT said.

The DOT also counted on "Balikbayans" or overseas Filipinos as a major contributor to the international arrivals, accounting for 84,745, representing 4.6 percent of the total arrivals.

From the period January to October, visitor receipts grew by 32.39 percent to US$1.61 billion from US$1.22 billion recorded a year ago.

The DOT is optimistic that it can achieve its target of 2.668 million visitor arrivals in 2005 and 5.0 million visitors by 2010 considering the current trend of visitor arrivals to the Philippines.

It has recognized the Chinese market as one of the major sources of tourists for the Philippines in the coming year.

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The year 2004 is deemed as a banner year for the agriculture sector as the Department of Agriculture (DA) remains confident in achieving a 4.85 – 5 percent annual growth rate in agriculture despite the series of typhoons that hit the country during the last quarter of 2004.

In its yearend report to Malacanang, the DA cited the robust output gain of 7.98 percent in the 1^st quarter. The 2^nd quarter came up with a 4.22 percent growth and the 3^rd quarter registered a considerable expansion of 7.94 percent.

Cumulatively, the DA said, during the first nine months of 2004, agriculture grew 6.82 percent.

At current prices, the gross value of total agriculture production amounted to P557.9 billion, posting a 19.19 percent increment this year.

The DA reported that the main growth drivers in 2004 were palay, corn and aquaculture. Palay and corn accounted for about 16 percent and 6 percent respectively of the total agriculture output.

Aquaculture has also considerably increased its share to total agriculture output to about 12 percent last year.

These three commodities, according to DA, have been performing strongly through the first three quarters of 2004.

During this period, growth rates were estimated at 14 percent for palay, 22.5 percent for corn, and 26.3 percent for aquaculture.

The gains in production of most crops offset the output reduction in coffee, mango, tobacco, camote, onion, garlic and other minor crops, the DA said.

Despite the four typhoons that hit the country, expected output for palay, corn and aquaculture would still push up agricultural production for the last quarter of 2004.

For the livestock sub-sector, the DA reported a slower rate gains of 0.48 percent in 2004 due to further reduction in cattle production and the low growth rate in hog production.

The poultry sub-sector realized a 2.96 percent increase in output this year. Gains were also recorded for chicken, chicken eggs and duck eggs with current prices gross of P78.3 billion, up by 19.29 percent over the 2003 level.

The DA said that the remarkable 26.25 percent expansion in aquaculture production pushed up the gross output of fisheries sub-sector by 12.65 percent.

The commercial and municipal fisheries also posted 1.57 and 2.98 percent growth respectively in its production, amounting to P103.5 billion gross value production, and representing a 16.69 percent increase this year.

The DA also scored accomplishments on President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s rice, corn, fisheries, livestock and high value commercial crops (HVCC) programs last year.

The DA also disclosed its 2005 priorities and targets as follows:

• Concentrate investments in quick-gestating irrigation development activities that will generate 60,034 hectares of irrigated area that would increase the average cropping intensity from 151 percent to 166 percent; 39,881 ha. from rehabilitation of degraded irrigation systems and 20,153 ha. from construction of new ones.
• Construct a total of 66,815 kilometers of service roads side by side with the irrigation canals that would provide greater access to the irrigated areas.
• Distribute 10,240 units of postharvest equipment and machineries such as threshers, harvesters, dryers and milling machines, 6,450 of which are copra dryers that will be distributed by the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) to coconut-growing areas.
• Continue efforts in facilitating access to credit support that will make loans available to small farmers and fishermen in the sector. It will assist 10,335 groups or a total of 66,325 individuals to access loans.
• Provide marketing assistance and facilitation services through the provision of timely and accurate business information and appropriate trading services.
• Make available to farmers and fishermen timely and accurate information that they may need in the conduct of their business and to facilitate the transfer of new and improved technologies.
• Distribute 927,000 bags of inbred and hybrid rice seeds on a 50:50 scheme, 59,000 bags of open-pollinated varieties (OPV) and hybrid corn seeds, and 49.5 million pieces of planting materials to ensure increase in production in major commodity system.

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Malacanang today said that the government would push through with its tourism-related projects despite the killer tsumani that hit neighboring countries in the region.

In a radio interview, Press Secretary and Presidential Spokesman Ignacio R. Bunye said that with or without the catastrophe, the Department of Tourism would continue its tourism promotions campaign as one of the flagship programs of the Macapagal-Arroyo administration.

Bunye said that tourism not only brings the much-needed foreign exchange into the country but also creates additional jobs for Filipinos.

He said that the DOT would continue to promote the country’s world-renowned tourist spots but without citing the tragedy that befell on our neighbors, whose tourist spots have been hardest hit by the catastrophe.

"We will just proceed with our program that we have started to implement even before the deluge hit our neighbors," Bunye said.

Bunye also said that he is confident that the DOT can achieve its target of 2.668 million visitor arrivals in 2005 and 5.0 million visitors by 2010 considering the current trend of visitor arrivals to the Philippines.

He said that one of the targets of the DOT in the coming years is the huge market of China, whose economy is the fastest growing in the region.

In its yearend report, the DOT said that it had posted a remarkable growth of 24.3 percent in visitor arrivals from January 1 to October 31, 2004.

The DOT said the increase in tourist arrivals to 1.861 million during the 10-month period could be attributed to the influx of inter-regional travelers from Asia, such as Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, China and Malaysia.

Visitors from these countries accounted for 964,404 arrivals, representing a 51.81 percent of the total visitor traffic to the Philippines.

The DOT said the increase could also be attributed to the aggressive marketing efforts of the DOT and the stronger support of the private sector and international organizations as well as the improving peace and order and political stability in the country.

From the period January to October, visitor receipts grew by 32.39 percent to US$1.61 billion from US$1.22 billion recorded a year ago.

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