In celebration of the 40th World Tourism Day, with the theme “Tourism and Rural Development,” Tourism chief Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said this year’s event is particularly relevant to the Philippines as many rural areas depend on tourism but have been adversely affected by the pandemic.
“This gradual revival of the industry will bring back jobs and livelihoods to the rural areas, where many of our tourism products, such as beach, diving, ecotourism, arts and culture, and farm sites are found,” she said.United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres said in a message that the impacts could lead to the loss of between 1.5 and 2.
Puyat said the statement recognizes, at the highest level, the importance of tourism to a nation’s development.