MAKING AN IMPACT Mapping Tourism to Reduce Poverty in Bicol Region (Philippines) About tourism circuit planning Tourism circuit planning involves mapping and assessing key tourism sites within a particular area. The process helps local governments and their private sector partners to identify and better understand the tourism gaps as well as the opportunities for generating jobs and investments in the destination.
Tourism circuit planning also works to map out the opportunities and constraints on marginalized sectors to participate in tourism employment, entrepreneurship, and governance. Sites that are vulnerable to disasters and climate change can be identified and lesser-known attraction sites can be integrated into these tour packages, allowing more local communities to partake from economic opportunities of tourism. As a result, the tourism circuit approach can enable the inclusion and protection of vulnerable groups in the growth and sustainable development of a destination.
Bicol Region: Albay and Sorsogon Bicol Region (Region VI) is located at the southernmost part of Luzon in central Philippines and is composed of six provinces. Two of these provinces, Albay and Sorsogon, were involved in the LGSP-LED Legazpi-Donsol Tourism Circuit Development Project. Albay is composed of 15 municipalities and 3 cities. The capital is Legazpi City. The province is a major producer of coconut, rice, sugar, and abaca. The production of hats, bags, mats, slippers, and other by products are also a main source of income. Sorsogon is composed of 1 city, Sorsogon City (also the capital) and 14 municipalities. Rugged terrain and coconut trees dominate the provincial landscape. Fishing is a common economic activity in coastal towns located within the province. Tourism is also a source of income in Albay and Sorsogon. In the last 5 years, tourist arrival growth rates in increased from 20% to 60%. The growth is attributed to the attraction sites including the Mayon Volcano and emerging tourist spots such as Lignon Hill, Embarcadero de Legazpi, Legazpi Boulevard and Cagsawa Nature Park.
MAKING AN IMPACT MAPPING TOURISM TO REDUCE POVERTY IN BICOL REGION
While tourism is a major focus in Albay, the sector in Sorsogon has not been fully developed. And despite the inherent attractions of these provinces, its tourism industry is not competitive compared to other destinations. Local officials consider this a great challenge.
LGSP-LED & the Tourism Circuit Development Project From 2012-2014, LGSP-LED worked with local governments on the Legazpi-Donsol Tourism Circuit Development Project. Using the tourism circuit approach, LGSP-LED worked with government officials and local enterprises in order to enhance visitor experience and develop more competitive tourism activities, goods, excursions, and facilities and increase visitors' length of stay and expenditure. Through the circuit planning process, it was understood that although the area offers a range of accommodation establishments, almost half of these hotels and pension houses are concentrated in Legazpi City, which limits tourist expenditure in the rest of the areas. There was also a lack of skills and competencies within the hotel workforce and, generally, a lack of skills enhancement and economic opportunities for women, especially in rural areas. Additionally, there was an absence of seasonal tour packages, especially in more remote areas within the circuit such as Camalig and Guinobatan. The lack of year-round attractions and activities in the Legazpi-Donsol-Ticao corridor was resulting in distinct high and low seasons for international and domestic tourism.
Ensuring everyone benefits from tourism development A key focus of the Legazpi-Donsol Tourism Circuit Development Project, as well as LGSP-LED overall, was to reduce the incidence of poverty and support local economic development for local communities. The Project did this in several key ways. One, the project sought to link community-based enterprises to the mainstream tourist activities. For example, the development of tour packages for Albay-Sorsogon and Masbate integrated small- and medium-sized businesses into the tourism circuit. Community-based tourist activities such as the gathering of lato (sea grapes) and sea urchins, which were part of the tour packages developed for Donsol-Pilar providing entry points for poor residents or communities into the local tourism sector.
MAKING AN IMPACT MAPPING TOURISM TO REDUCE POVERTY IN BICOL REGION
Also included as activity in the tour package in Sorsogon was interaction with butanding (whale sharks). Under LGSP-LED, unemployed men were trained to become Butanding Interaction Officers. This gave them seasonal employment through guiding tourists. In addition to this, 42 women who were mostly housewives were trained on meat processing. To date, five of them market their products to the local communities and food carts. The Province Governments of Albay and Sorsogon and the member LGUs of the tourism circuit were supported by LGSP-LED in terms preparing the Workforce Development Plans and plans for skills training. Target participants for the skills training were unemployed residents and indigenous people, Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries, out-of-school youth or persons with disabilities. Legazpi-Donsol Tourism Circuit Development Project was successful in many ways. But the impacts on the poor and ability to build capacity among the vulnerable population is one of the most positive results and deserves to be celebrated.
SUMMARY Program name: Legazpi-Donsol Tourism Circuit Development Project Location: Bicol Region (Region VI) Date: 2014-2016 Population: 740,743(Sorsogon) 1,233,432 (Albay) Area: 211,901 ha (Sorsogon) 257,577 ha (Albay) Key program components:
Tourism Circuit Plan developed and new tourism packages and destination brand developed Devlopment of a Workforce Development Plan Trianing program for workers in various skill areas LEIPO and private sector representative training Local Investments and Incentives code formulates Project Investment Breif was prepared Tourism statistics and information system was installed
Impacts:
An estimated 2,000 new tourism-related jobs will have been created in the Circuit by the end of 2016. Annual visitor arrivals to the Albay-Sorsogon Tourism Circuit rose from 636,158 in 2013 to 1.128 million in 2015. This represents a remarkable 33% average annual growth rate over the period. As of March 2016, local and national government investments in tourism-enabling projects for Albay totaled an estimated PhP 5.7 billion for construction (ongoing) of priority transportation infrastructure. Total tourism-related private investments in the circuit from 2014 to 2016 are estimated at PhP 65 million for the Legazpi City and the 5 other municipalities in Albay. The largest of these investments are retail developments in the main tourism service center of Legazpi City.