NEDA notes low influx of tourists in Davao

Friday 18th of February 2011

DAVAO CITY, Feb. 18 (PIA) -- Slow influx of tourists in the city was noted last year with only one percent growth and a slight decline of domestic travelers.

The National Economic and Development Authority reported that the tourism sector’s performance in the region in 2010 was “rather flat as reflected in the volume of visitor arrivals.”

Regional Director Ma. Lourdes Lim of NEDA bared that the region recorded a total of 671,603 visitor arrivals during the first three quarters last year, which she said “reflects a sluggish growth of 1 percent over the same period the previous year.”

Lim said there was a slight decline in the number of domestic travelers, yet she noted that said sector still comprised the bulk at 92.3 percent share.

Influx of foreign tourists improved scoring at 7 percent compared to 2009’s 2 percent, while the overseas Filipino tourists or the Balikbayans also picked up at 7.7 percent, Lim stated.

She said among the foreign tourists, the Americans accounted for the highest number of arrivals, followed by the Japanese and the Koreans.

In 2010, the tourism sector earned P8.2 billion in tourist receipts for the region, Lim said adding that it’s almost the same level as 2009 at P8.1 billion. (PIA-11/Carina L. Cayon)