BORACAY ISLAND, AKLAN (11 February 2022) — The Philippine government is leaving no stone unturned in its efforts to breathe life into the country’s tourism industry, as the national vaccination program is expanded to cover more age groups.
During the launch of Resbakuna sa Botika and Resbakuna Kids in Boracay Island on Friday, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said that around 1,000 tourists are expected to arrive in the country until today after the government opened the nation’s borders to fully vaccinated foreign tourists.
In Boracay, for instance, Puyat noted that even foreigners and domestic tourists can avail of free booster shots while enjoying their vacation.
“Lahat ng turista na pupunta dito [sa Boracay], foreigner o domestic, ay libre ang booster shot dito sa Watsons,” Puyat said.
“Ang maganda, pupunta lang sila dito, tapos libre pa ang booster. [Mayroon pang] sand, beach, napakasarap na pagkain at bakunado lahat ng tao,” she added.
Tourism as a priority in the vaccination roadmap
The Philippines is among the countries in Asia that have opened its borders to foreign tourists in a bid to revitalize not only its tourism sector but the country’s overall economy.
Puyat said that one of the main reasons why foreign tourists want to visit the Philippines is its high vaccination rate and eased travel requirements.
The country opened its borders to foreign tourists on Thursday, after nearly two years. Travelers from visa-free countries just need to present proof of vaccination, negative RT-PCR test results taken within 48 hours prior to departure, and outbound tickets to their country of origin or next country of destination.
“Ang sinasabi ng foreigners, ang gusto nila is that madali raw mag-travel dito and they feel safe kasi they found out about the vaccination rate at nagbu-booster na tayo,” Puyat said.
“Whenever we talk to our foreign partners, lagi nilang tinatanong ang vaccination rate ng bansa. Noong nalaman nilang almost all our tourist destinations ay 100% na ang vaccinated, nagulat sila dahil talo pa raw natin ang ibang bansa,” she added.
Puyat also underscored the importance of the vaccination program in the national government’s efforts to revive the tourism sector.
Boracay as a model destination
The tourism secretary also lauded the efforts of local officials of the world-class tourist destination in fully vaccinating its population, which has made a significant impact on the province’s tourism industry
“Ang maganda sa Boracay, 100% vaccinated ang population at ang tourism workers ay walang vaccine hesitancy,” Puyat said.
For his part, National Task Force Against COVID-19 chief implementer and vaccine czar Secretary Carlito G. Galvez, Jr. said that Boracay can be a role model for other provinces and tourist destinations, because of its outstanding vaccination rollout and coverage.
“You now harvest the fruits of your labor, first time now that we heard na zero ang COVID-19 cases dito. Despite the movement of people, talagang nakikita natin ‘yung effect ng vaccine na it really saves lives and prevents severe [cases] and hospitalization,” Galvez said.
“Dahil 100% na ang ating vaccination dito, we encourage the people of Boracay and Aklan, na kayo ulit ang maging model ng 100% na boosted [population],” he added.
The government launched the Resbakuna sa Botika Program here in Boracay, in partnership with Watsons, one of the country’s leading drug store chains, to make booster shots accessible to both locals and tourists.
Through the program, the government aims to administer at least 72 million booster shots to eligible Filipinos this year.
As of February 10, the Philippines has already administered a total of 8,712,955 booster and additional doses.
At the same event, Presidential Adviser on COVID-19 Response Secretary Vince Dizon also called on the public to support the vaccination program and avail of the free booster shots as soon as they are eligible to do so.
“Hindi po ito kaya ng gobyerno mag-isa so ang kailangan po, we exercise our civic responsibility to get vaccinated,” Dizon said.
“So please everyone magpabakuna na po tayo, magpa-booster na tayo, pabakunahan na rin natin ang ating mga kabataan para makapasok na sila sa eskwela,” he added.
Expanded vaccination of children
Aside from the rollout of the Resbakuna sa Botika in Boracay, the government also began the vaccination for children aged five to 11 in the island.
Galvez said this program is crucial to safely reopen schools and allow children to visit public spaces after almost two years of being confined inside their homes.
“Very emotional at very critical ang sector na ito, dahil halos dalawang taon na silang nakulong sa mga bahay,” Galvez said.
“Hindi po kumpleto ang proteksyon ng pamilya kung si bunso ay hindi bakunado. Ngayon, pwede na tayong mag-staycation at bumisita sa ibang areas dahil bakunado na si lolo, lola, tatay at nanay, kuya at ate, at si bunso,” he added.
Dizon echoed Galvez’ views on the importance of vaccinating children, as he encouraged parents to have their kids inoculated at the soonest possible time.
“Alam niyo noong Omicron, ang daming nahawang bata, nakakaawa dahil may mga bata pang naospital. Kaya please bring our children to the pedia sites [and have them vaccinated],” Dizon said.
As of February 10, the Philippines has vaccinated 52,262 children aged five to 11.
A total of 130,741,152 vaccine doses have been administered throughout the country, of which 61,058,862 Filipinos are now fully vaccinated. ###
