MARAWI CITY, Lanao del Sur, Dec. 4 (PIA) --- Tourism
officers and industry players across the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
(ARMM) gathered on December 1 in Cotabato City to strengthen tourism linkages
within the region.
The Department of Tourism in the region (DOT-ARMM) spearheaded
the activity dubbed 1st ARMM Tourism Assembly.
The activity gathered more than
160 tourism officers from the provinces, cities and municipalities of the
region, including tourism committee chairs from local government units, and
tourism industry players as well as policy makers.
“Sila ang ating mga frontline
service providers, sila yung mga nasa local government units, sila ang mas
higit na nakakaalam ng tourism potentials nila (They are our frontline service
providers, those in local government units know the potentials of their areas
better),” DOT-ARMM Secretary Maritess Manguindra underscored.
Manguindra said the assembly is
aimed at presenting strategic initiatives and policies that will lead to
improved performance of the region’s tourism.
The region is composed of the mainland provinces of
Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur and the island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and
Tawi-Tawi. Based on a report of DOT-ARMM, almost 170,000 domestic and foreign
tourists arrived in the region in 2014, an increase of roughly 11% compared
with 147,037 visitors in 2013.
With
53,394 tourist arrivals posted in 2014, the province of Lanao del Sur has
become the top visitors’ destination in the region. Since 2010, more than
700,000 tourists arrived in the region, official figures showed.
The
tourism event includes tourism product exhibit wherein local products and
product collaterals from local producers, service providers and local
government units within the region were showcased.
“Ang
mga naka-exhibit ay ang mga popular na mga produktong hinahanap-hanap ng mga
turistang napapasyal sa ating mga bayan (Those exhibited are popular products
tourists who visit our towns would usually look for),” Manguindra said.
The
exhibitors include the Al Jamelah ‘Inaul’ Weaving Center in the town of Datu
Odin Sinsuat in Maguindanao province. The weaving center produces ‘inaul’,
which is typically used as ‘malong’, a tubular skirt wrapped around the lower part
of the body.
The
estimated gross receipt from tourism in the region in 2014 was approximately P3
billion generated from cultural, nature, sun and beach, diving and marine
sports and other relevant events.
“It’s
more fun in ARMM, so tayo mismo ang dapat maunang magdevelop nito dahil tayo
lang sa ARMM ang makakapagsabi nito (It’s more fun in ARMM thus, we should be
the first ones to develop this since we are the ones who know this well),”
Maguindra said. (BPI/APB/PIA-10)
No comments