Frasco: Days as mayor helped in new role

TOURISM Secretary Christina Frasco on Thursday said her days as a local chief executive gave her a sense of urgency and pragmatism she now employs in her work at the national level. "In my role as secretary of the Department of Tourism (DoT), I continue to strive to bring a local perspective to national governance, never forgetting where I came from and remembering that which matters most — strengthening the foundation of tourism through basic development advancing its cause through innovation, providing economic opportunities to our fellow Filipinos, and instituting meaningful programs that have a direct and immediate impact on the upliftment and quality of life," Frasco said at the Philippine Model Cities and Municipalities 2024 forum and awards presented by The Manila Times. Frasco recalled how "it came as a surprise" when President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. chose her to be his administration's tourism chief back in 2022. "According to the President, my local governance perspective was exactly what he had hoped that I would bring to tourism, recognizing that there is still so much basic development that is needed to transform Philippine tourism towards global competitiveness," she said. "So, beyond simply promoting the Philippines, we did the harder work of confronting the challenges and barriers faced by the tourism industry preventing it from ranking higher than its competitors, especially in the Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)," she added. Frasco noted that under her watch, the DoT crafted the National Tourism Development Plan which is geared toward steering the Philippines to becoming a tourism powerhouse. In fact, 2023 became a momentous year for Philippine tourism having contributed to the nation's growth "in ways we have not seen in over a decade," she said. The tourism sector churned out employment opportunities for 6.21 million Filipinos and listed P3.36 trillion in combined domestic and international expenditures, which contributed 8.6 percent to the country's gross domestic product (GDP). "Even more remarkable was the nearly 48 percent growth in tourism direct gross value added to our economy — the highest growth seen by our country in nearly a quarter of a century. And for the first time in 15 years, the industry registered a net trade surplus of $2.45 billion in travel services," Frasco said. These achievements were borne from her resolve and drive she carried from being the mayor of Liloan town in Cebu to the Cabinet. Looking back on her days as local chief executive, Frasco then lauded the holding of such events as the one organized by The Times as it helps "perpetuate the good news" regarding the "work being done on the ground" by local government units. "Your work stands as a symbol of hope and inspiration to other local government units striving to create meaningful change in their communities," she said.