Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco discussed matters of great interest between the Philippines and Chile, including the Philippines as a place to learn English as a Second Language (ESL), and exploring culture and heritage as key in tourism promotions.
This, after Philippine Ambassador to Chile, Celeste Vinzon-Balatbat paid a courtesy visit to the Tourism Chief at the Department of Tourism (DOT) Office in Makati recently.
The meeting tackled the rosy prospects of the ESL in the country with the tourism chief explaining that the Philippines ranks prominently as a preferred destination for ESL.
“The Philippines as a place for ESL is a good proposition for the country.”
The Ambassador said the Philippines as a place for ESL is a good proposition for the country, similar to how we position the Philippines in Japan and Korea.
Meanwhile, Frasco also pointed out to the power of heritage and nature-based tourism as good propositions for the Philippines, comparing it to how Latin American cultures like Peru’s Machu Picchu has catapulted the country into global prominence.
“Heritage and nature-based tourism is something we would like to reintroduce as a strength of Philippine tourism.”
“Heritage and nature-based tourism is something we would like to reintroduce as a strength of Philippine tourism—to go beyond fun and adventure, which we will continue to promote, but also we would like to capitalize on our heritage, historical and cultural assets,” the tourism chief stressed.
Frasco and Balatbat also discussed the pending agreement that would foster greater cooperation on tourism promotion between the two countries which had been considered prior to the pandemic.
The tourism head affirmed that the DOT will revisit the draft and incorporate new priorities under the new National Tourism Development Plan (NTDP), which President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has recently approved.
The Philippines and Chile have a shared history of having been a colony of Spain, and in recent years have worked together to deepen relations in education, disaster risk reduction, trade and investment, and more.
