50% of Pinoys optimistic of economic growth: survey DOT, NPM tackle ways to lure more mid-East tourists to PH

Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco and New Perspective Media (NPM)

Group CEO and founder Karen Franco have agreed to help each other find ways to drive tourists from the Middle East to the Philippines by promoting medical tourism, halal travel, diving, arts, and culture, among others.

In a meeting at the Department of Tourism (DOT) headquarters in Makati on June 5, the two engaged in discussions on the diverse range of tourism opportunities that the Philippines could promote in the Middle East, it was reported in the Filipino Times.

Frasco thanked Remo for the invaluable insights she shared during the meeting, acknowledging their potential to aid the department in positioning the Philippines as a global travel destination and capturing the lucrative Middle East outbound travel and tourism market.

She said the Philippines has been hailed as the top diving destination in the world by many organizations.

The country, home to the

Halfof adult Filipinos think the local economy will post an improvement in the next six months, while some 40% believe there will be no changes from the present, results of the Tugon ng Masa (TNM) survey conducted by OCTA Research released on Sunday showed.

UNESCO World Heritage Site Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, won the “Best Dive Destination” during the Diving, Resort and Travel Show in Malaysia on Feb. 24-26, the “World’s Leading Dive Destination” during last year’s World Travel Awards, and “Asia’s Leading Dive Destination” from the same group from 2019 to 2022.

Meanwhile, Remo congratulated the DOT for the well-deserved recognition of the Philippines as the Emerging Muslim-Friendly Destination of the Year at the esteemed Halal in Travel Global Summit 2023, held in Singapore on June 1.

She also updated the tourism secretary on NPM’s forthcoming initiatives in the UAE, including the 10th annual Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition, as well as the upcoming 2nd Philippine Economic and Investment Summit, both slated to take place in Dubai on May 11 to 12, 2024.

The twin events will feature the Philippine International Travel Fair to promote localities

FDOT, P8

The survey, conducted March 24 to 28, 2023, found that 50% of respondents across the country think the economy will be better than the present, higher than the 46% recorded in October 2022.

The highest optimism was recorded in the Visayas with 69%, followed by balance Luzon with 47%, the National Capital Region (NCR) with 46%, and Mindanao with 43%.

In terms of socioeconomic classes, the highest optimism was seen in Class D with 51%, followed by Class E with 50%, and Class ABC with 44%.

Broken down geographically, the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) posted the highest percentage with 79%, while the lowest was recorded in Soccsksargen with 12%.

Some 6% of respondents said they think the economy will be worse than the present in the next six months, down from the 10% percentage of pessimists in the previous survey conducted in October 2022.

The biggest percentage of pessimists was seen in Mindanao with 11%, followed by NCR with 7%, balance Luzon with 5%, and the Visayas with 3%.

Socioeconomically, the highest percentage of pessimists was in Class ABC with 11%, backed by Class E with 8%, and Class D with 5%.

The Davao Region had the highest percentage of pessimists with 19%, while the lowest was seen in CAR and Region II or the Cagayan Valley, with 0%.

Results also showed that 40% of respondents thought that there would be no changes in the next six months, while 4% were neither F50%, P8