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Tourism Subsectors in Central VisayasUsing the Value Chain Analysis Framework | October 2007

Private Sector Promotion (SMEDSEP) Program

[email protected]

[email protected]

[email protected]

GFA Consultant

Publisher

SMEDSEPsmedsep.ph

10F German Development CenterPDCP Bank Center BuildingV A Rufino St cor L P Leviste StSalcedo Village, Makati City 1227PHILIPPINES

[email protected]

Rita Pilarca

Leah Divina Siton Steigerwald

The Small and Medium Enterprise Development forSustainable Employment Program

Ms Anja Gomm, Program Manager

September 2007

Gottfried Hilz-Ward

Tourism Subsectors in Central VisayasUsing the Value Chain Analysis Framework | October 2007

Private Sector Promotion (SMEDSEP) Program

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CONTENTS

TABLES 3

FIGURES 3

ACRONYMS 4

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 5

1 INTRODUCTION 9

1.1 The Small and Medium Enterprise Development for Sustainable Employment Program 9

1.2 Background of the Study 9

1.3 Scope of the Study 9

1.4 Methodology 10

1.5 Field data collection procedure 11

1.6 Analysis and recommendations 11

1.7 Limitations of the investigation 12

2 CEBU 13

2.1 Health Tourism in Cebu City 13 2.1.1 Value Chain Analysis Medical Tourism Cebu City 14 2.1.2 Conclusions and Further Recommendations 18

2.2 Spa and Wellness Tourism Cebu City 19 2.2.1 Conclusions and further recommendations 23

3 BOHOL PROVINCE 24

3.1 Value Chain Analysis Ecotourism 24

3.2 Conclusions and Further Recommendations 29

5 SIQUIJOR PROVINCE 32

5.1 Value Chain Analysis Ecotourism in Siquijor Province 32


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6 NEGROS ORIENTAL 34

6.1 Education Tourism in Negros Oriental 34


7 SUMMARY OF MAIN CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 40

8 WORKSHOP IN CEBU CITY ON INITIAL FINDINGS OF THE MISSION 44

9 DTI’S ROLE IN THE VALUE CHAIN PROCESS 45

ANNEX 46

Annex 1: Mission Programme (as undertaken by the Consultant) 46

Annex 2: Contacts (Persons met by the Consultant) 48

Annex 3: References 50

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Tables 1 Critical Issues Medical Tourism Cebu City 162 Critical Issues Spa and Wellness Tourism Cebu City 213 Critical Issues Ecotourism Bohol 274 Critical Issues Ecotourism Siquijor 315 Critical Issues Education Tourism Negros Oriental 37 Figures

1 Value Chain Medical Tourism, Cebu City 152 Value Chain Spa and Wellness Tourism, Cebu City 203 Value Chain Ecotourism Bohol 264 Value Chain Ecotourism Siquijor 305 Value Chain Education Tourism Negros Oriental 36

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Acronyms

CHENO Consortium of Higher Education in Negros Oriental DED Deutscher Entwicklungsdienst

German Development Service DENR Department of Environment and Natural Resources DFA Department of Foreign Affairs DTI Department of Trade and Industry DOH Department of Health DOT Department of Tourism ESL English as a Second Language GTZ Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Technische Zusammenarbeit

German Technical Cooperation JCI Joint Commission International NCR National Capital Region NGO nongovernment organization NIPA National Park NITI Negros Island Tourism Inc SMEDSEP Small and Medium Enterprise Development for Sustainable

Employment Program VC Value Chain VCA Value Chain Analysis

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Executive Summary

The tourism industry in the Visayas continues its course of dynamic growth. Around the central hub, the international airport in Mactan, leisure resorts and business hotels have turned Cebu into the second most important tourist destination in the Philippines. After in the past years, tourism interests and investments have been spreading from Cebu to other Visayan provinces, notably to Bohol, especially to Panglao. Recognizing the opportunities for tourism in this region, the Government intensifies its efforts to spur development, especially in the regions identified as future key tourism areas. The Small and Medium Enterprise Development for Sustainable Economic Employment Program (SMEDSEP) and the Department for Trade and Industry (DTI) recognize the growth potential of the tourism sector and plan to strengthen the competence of small and medium enterprises and to improve their business conditions. With the Value Chain Analysis (VCA) of selected tourism subsectors, SMEDSEP and DTI intend to scrutinize the performance and competitiveness of the following tourism subsectors

o health tourism in Cebu o ecotourism in Bohol o ecotourism in Siquijor and o education tourism in Negros Oriental.

This study presents the results and conclusions from a consultant mission to the four (4) provinces which took place from 20 August to 4 September 2007. The mission had as its main task the assessment of the priority sub-sectors and the formulation of recommendations towards the development of their competitiveness. Despite its short time, the mission visited Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental and met with tourism companies, public and private sector representatives. The main conclusions are summarized as follows Medical Tourism in Cebu1 A few years ago, the Philippine Government began propagating the commercial opportunities of medical tourism for the Philippines. In fact, international medical tourism registers considerable growth rates from which Philippine hospitals could benefit given their strong medical competence and their competitive cost

1 Health tourism was broken down into two categories: Medical Tourism and Medical Spa and Wellness

Tourism.

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structure. Three privately owned hospitals in Cebu consider entering the medical tourism market, but only the Cebu Doctor’s Hospital intends to aggressively offer its services to foreign patients on commercial basis. In preparation for this, it is suggested to clarify the type and scope of medical diagnosis and treatments which shall be put out on the market as well as the organizational and management requirements for handling patients. A cooperation of hospitals with hotels and tour operators could ensure a high quality travel package. The biggest challenge concerns the acquisition of customers or the successful marketing of medical services, especially accreditation. A marketing strategy should be the starting point for a time and cost efficient program to build up partnerships among the travel agencies, partner hospitals and doctors and other industry partners. Medical Spa and Wellness Tourism Cebu Wellness tourism is another global trend in the international tourism industry. A broad spectrum of wellness products and treatments is available. More and more specialized and differentiated wellness formulas are launched to attract customers. Some Cebu resorts run separate spa departments or villages and are highly competent in this market segment. Many day spas in Cebu City strive to attract tourists into their establishments. For tapping the excellent opportunities in medical tourism, resorts and spa operators need to expand their service portfolio and offer stand alone wellness packages. This strategy aims at attracting clients for a health and wellness holiday in Cebu and thus making Cebu a wellness destination. A concerted marketing effort in key source markets needs to complement the development of several day packages which should include innovative and signature treatments in order to gain a competitive advantage. Ecotourism in Bohol Bohol is often referred to as the ecotourism champion of the Philippines and the island possesses abundant resources for nature based tourism. Demand for ecotourism will grow strongly not only from European but more and more from Asian markets. But like in any other tourism segment, ecotourism needs products, trails, itineraries, packages, experiences to offer to customers. In a sustainable way, the natural environment needs to be prepared or at least opened and explained to visitors.

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In Bohol, many more dive sites, species and nature attractions await the visitors providing a natural or cultural experience for them. Particular attention should be given to exploratory activities which allow visitors not only to consume but to actively learn. An ecotourism destination needs a strong communication mechanism to inform visitors of nature sites to visit. Bohol’s biggest market lies right next door in the resorts of Panglao. It is also recommended to actively encourage ecological resort and travel operations to further improve Bohol’s competitive position. Ecotourism in Siquijor For Siquijor, nature based tourism is virtually the only form of suitable tourism. For this, the island offers very good natural conditions. Its seclusion is both an advantage and a disadvantage. The number of travellers to Siquijor remains relatively low and is unlikely to rise significantly unless the island receives regular airline flights and accommodation capacity expands. Local government and tourism stakeholders need to agree on a common approach forward and the Master Plan which was prepared for Siquijor could help in this discussion. Similar to Bohol, the range of nature sites, activities and experiences need to increase if more visitors are to be attracted. The destination needs to find its niche and observe carefully the path other ecotourism destinations in the Philippines take. Education Tourism in Negros Oriental For some years, the Philippines have seized a market opportunity by offering English language courses to foreigners, usually Korean students. A first such attempt is now made also in Dumaguete City. The study concludes that Negros Oriental could forcefully build up a significant capacity for English language courses. A farsighted strategy should focus on establishing partnerships and networks in Korea and China in order to access possible clients. A key objective for Dumaguete City is to gain a reputation abroad as one of the best places to learn English. In a further step, Negros Oriental intends to capitalize on its position as the seat of several colleges and universities with the aim to attract students, teachers and researchers and to become a destination for scientific meetings and conferences. This proposal needs further discussion and clarification involving not only educational establishments but also tourism operators. A clear step-by-step approach should result from this, led by the Consortium of Higher Education in Negros Oriental (CHENO).

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The mission concluded with a workshop in Cebu with a presentation and discussion of the preliminary findings. It is recommended that the working groups formed by the stakeholders from each region continue this discussion and the Value Chain Process in cooperation with SMEDSEP / DTI.

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1 Introduction 1.1 The Small and Medium Enterprise Development for Sustainable

Employment Program The Small and Medium Enterprise Development for Sustainable Economic Employment Program SMEDSEP follows an integrated approach for the development of the private sector in the Philippines with a regional focus on the Visayas. Its vision is to make the Visayas the location of choice for competitive SMEs. Its mission is to facilitate the development and replication of sustainable models for improving the local business climate (especially small and medium enterprises SMEs) in the Visayas. The program objective is the creation of better business conditions. 1.2 Background of the Study The tourism sector occupies a privileged position in the second phase of the SMEDSEP programme for several reasons: the availability of excellent tourism resources in the concerned provinces, the existence of a functioning tourism industry with many small and medium enterprises involved, the intention of the Government to develop the Central Visayas as a prime tourist destination, to name just a few. SMEDSEP’s partner, the Department for Trade and Industry DTI recommended the tourism sector as a key sector for the Program. The Value Chain Analysis (VCA) is a recognized methodology for the systematic competitiveness analysis of enterprises and local industries. This approach examines all relevant activities and processes and filters out those which have a critical relevance for improving the competitive performance. The Value Chain Analysis is an appropriate methodology for this particular assignment which aims at assessing different tourism subsectors in the Central Visayas and at identifying critical issues in the development process. 1.3 Scope of the Study According to the terms of reference, the mission had the following tasks

to identify products and subsectors in the tourism sector in Central Visayas with high growth potential in terms of market and employment. Proposed entry points are: ecocultural tourism (Bohol and Siquijor), educational and learning facilities based tourism (Negros Oriental) and medical tourism and health and wellness (Cebu)

to conduct an assessment of the top priority tourism subsectors in Central Visayas following the Value Chain Analysis framework

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to facilitate the formulation of recommended interventions to develop the competitiveness of each of the identified subsectors

to develop the capacity of selected Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) staff in Central Visayas and other important stakeholders by involving them in the whole value chain process.

1.4 Methodology Purpose of Value Chain Analysis The application of the Value Chain Analysis in the tourism subsectors has a clear objective in mind: the identification of processes and elements in the production of tourism services which need to be addressed in order to improve capacity, competence and performance of service suppliers. The Value Chain Analysis enables the planner to systematically examine the various phases of the production of tourism services or alternatively, of the consumption of these services. As tourism belongs to the category of service industries, one usually chooses the consumption approach starting the analysis from the moment at which a client prepares to buy the product. The subsectors in case – health tourism, ecotourism, education tourism - have a much more complex character compared to industrial products which are usually subjected to a Value Chain Analysis, for two reasons

o horizontal complexity: each supplier produces a (sometimes slightly) different product for a different clientele (such as wellness resort vs local day spa)

o vertical complexity: product chain contains several and different types of suppliers (hotel, airline, marketing office, tourist guides, etc).

The Value Chain Analysis points therefore at critical issues in a more general manner indicating a critical phase in the process. Some suppliers may have solved the problems, many others have not. Because of the vertical complexity, some suppliers in the chain are out of reach for the consultant or cannot precisely be named at all (like air and land transportation). It is recommended to continue the VCA with focusing on the identified critical issues and detailing further chain elements in order to address them more specifically. Methodological steps The preparation of the Tourism Value Chain Study involved the following four (4) methodological steps

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o analysis of studies and documents relating to tourism in the Philippines, especially the Visayas Region

o discussion with stakeholders and collection of data and information in the relevant provinces Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental and in the City of Dumaguete

o conduct of workshop with stakeholders in Cebu with the objective to present and discuss the preliminary conclusions from the mission

o analysis of the complete set of verbal and documented information and draft of Value Chain study report.

1.5 Field data collection procedure The Mission took place from 20 August to 4 September 2007. A detailled mission programme is attached in Annex 1. Field visits were generally prepared with information obtained from the DTI and other sources such as tourism websites. The DTI scheduled a work programme for each visit to the provinces. During all field visits, the consultant met with local government units, DOT or rovincial Tourism Offices as well as DTI offices or representatives. Very important were meetings with private sector representatives from hotels, travel agencies, transportation companies or tourism sector associations. Information was gathered mainly from these interviews and publications on the local tourism industry. Additionally, some tourism sites, attractions and hotels were visited in order to experience first hand the destination. 1.6 Analysis and recommendations Before the start of the field missions, the Consultant developed a set of hypothesis on typical critical issues based on industry experience in the Philippines and the Visayas in particular. These hypotheses needed to be critically reviewed throughout the interview phase. They were essential guidelines to streamline the study process. Information gathered from available documents, from interviews with stakeholders and from impressions during the field visits were consecutively analysed and evaluated. The critical issues as used in the following VCA result from the consultant’s assessments. Similarly, recommendations and comments for further actions express the Consultants conclusions or questions on the identified constraints.

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1.7 Limitations of the investigation The mission faced the following constraints

a) The study was to analyse three subsectors in four provinces. Several field visits were organized to meet key stakeholders and to visit selected sites and tourism facilities. The limited time allotted for each subsector and province did not allow investigating indepth the provinces’ tourism situation so it had to focus on the main critical issues. This report therefore cannot discuss all aspects and facets of the local tourism industries.

b) The planned mission programme scheduled interviews with key resource

persons which at several occasions could not take place due to the unavailability of the interviewees. Missed interviews could not be brought back on the agenda at a later stage because of time limitations. Furthermore, interviews with nonkey resource persons could only be sporadically conducted. It is not clear to what an extent the reduced information collection impacted on the comprehensive assessment of the subsector. It has certainly reduced the capability of a comprehensive value chain analysis. The mission should have had more time in the field and some spare time for rescheduling missed appointments.

c) The assignment did not include any market research on existing or

potential source markets for the subsectors. Market information could therefore only be gathered from product suppliers or wholesaler in the Visayas or from secondary literature such as available tourism studies. This information can hardly be verified without a proper market study. Statements to the market potential must therefore take into account a possible bias and the stringent criteria of the value chain theory may not be met. As both health tourism and education tourism are in their infant stages, further and more detailed market studies are needed to be carried out.

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2 Cebu 2.1 Health Tourism in Cebu City The Philippine Government has identified medical tourism as well as health and wellness tourism in the health industry as promising business opportunities for public and private health institutions. This assumption is built on the fact that the Philippines has top level medical facilities, skills and competencies which can be delivered at highly competitive costs. For a long time, the country has been exporting doctors and nurses to work worldwide creating a positive business reputation for the country. Similarly, the tourism resources of the Philippines include many components which can enhance the visitor’s health, physical and mental wellbeing: the warm climate, sea water, natural environment, traditional healing practices, alternative medicine, healthy and organic food, the spa tradition and service minded personnel. The economic benefits of health tourism include foreign exchange earnings, employment and income in the health, tourism, transport and other service sectors.

Health and wellness tourism is considered a field of tourism which contains several different types of tourism. The literature distinguishes among five types

o medical tourism (with invasive and noninvasive medical treatment,

aesthetic surgery, dental care, etc) o medical spa recreation (a combination of medical, physiotherapeutic,

sports activities) o wellness tourism (resorts and day spas) o retirement stays o rehabilitation.

GTZ/DTI published a strategy study on health and medical services entitled “National Strategy and Policy Framework for Cross-Border Health and Wellness Professional Services.” This study provides comprehensive background information on health and wellness tourism in the Philippines. Stakeholders can find valuable information on current practices, the legal framework, potential markets, etc. Because of its limited scope, this appraisal study cannot assess all five types of health tourism which may well have business opportunities in the Philippines. It will concentrate therefore on two types or its combination relevant for Cebu at this point: medical tourism and medical spa recreation and wellness tourism.

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2.1.1 Value Chain Analysis Medical Tourism Cebu City In the last two years, several studies on the opportunities of medical tourism have been conducted and a high level government task force was founded to give thrust to the export of medical services. In the Philippines a medical tourism programme was launched by the Department of Health (DOH). The Department of Tourism (DOT) is flanking these efforts by incorporating medical tourism in its global promotion activities and by regulating the quality standards in the industry. While a few hospitals in Manila obtained national and international certification and accreditation and deploy considerable efforts in venturing into medical tourism, this process is still at the very beginning in Cebu City, the Philippines second medical service center. Of the three main hospitals in Cebu City – Perpetual Succour Hospital, Chong Hua Hospital and Cebu Doctors University Hospital - only the last one seems to have immediate ambitions and capacities to deliver regular medical services to foreign patients other than those patients who stay in the Philippines for holiday or family visits The following VCA seeks to identify the major links which are necessary to produce, deliver and sell medical services. This analysis is conducted from a market driven and tourism industry point of view. It does not assess quality, skills and competencies of medical services. Health professionals and available studies see a very strong demand for medical tourism services in the Philippines. Experiences from other Asian countries point at a dynamic demand from Arab, European and American markets. Most of the (potential) suppliers of medical tourism services in Cebu would venture into a completely new territory as they still have little experience with markets, international clients and the necessary services to be provided all along the chain. Medical tourism is clearly a new tourism field for Cebu and it will need time and a strategic long term approach to turn it into a significant tourism segment. The Value Chain charts as shown in each chapter visualize

o Value links o emphasize critical factors / value links o possible players or suppliers for each value link.

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VC - Medical Tourism (invasive, noninvasive) – Cebu City

Figure 1 Value Chain Medical Tourism Cebu

patients from • overseas • Japan • Balikbayan

• transport to Philippines

• transport at destination

• medical exam • medical

treatment • pre and post

medical care

• informing • advising • selling • packaging • organizing

• accom-

modate • cater

• organize excursions

• perform events • provide recreation

DOT

Outbound Tour Operator or

Medical Tour Agency

Insurance companies

Sales Agents

Airline

Ground Transport Company

Hotel, Guest House

Hospital Cultural Institution

Recreation Site Operator

SPA

Tourism Offices

Inbound Tour Operator

Hospital

Restaurant

Ambulatory Practice

Care center

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Table 1 Critical Issues Medical Tourism Cebu City

Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints

Recommendations and Comments

marketing and distribution in international markets

DOT, outbound tour operators, medical service agencies, insurance companies

medical services of Cebu City hospitals have not yet been promoted abroad distribution partners abroad inexistent, but some cooperation are being set up with Japanese partners hospitals do not have capacity to professionally conduct market research and buildup distribution network foreign and Philippine tour operators as well as medical service agencies are not yet involved in distribution chain The national strategy does not show any quantitative information, nor does it specify the particular situation in Cebu City

do hospitals have the competence to sell their services directly? Is it economical to build up marketing competence or should they leave it to service providers?

clarification which medical services can be

promoted, packaged and sold by the stakeholders

what services can Cebu City based tour operators bring in?

It is recommended to organise a roundtable meeting with hospitals, tour operators and selected hotels in order to discuss joint marketing and operating activities. Alternatively, consider to hold a high level symposium which involve national and international stakeholders as well as experts Roundtable should work on marketing strategy with a clear priority focus (such as Balikbayans, Japanese where already contacts exist) contact with Manila based health facilities to explore a joint national marketing programme. Evaluate Philippine experience on this matter identification of internationally operating health tourism agencies and contact them

accommodation hotels, Cebu City and Should hospitals invest in tourism examine accommodation needs for hospitals and

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Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


(uniform all small) and catering

hospitals Mactan have excellent hotel and resort facilities to be used by foreign patients

services such as accommodation or restaurants?

assess hotel services for that purpose

medical examination, treatment and care

hospitals, ambulatory practices

Hospitals claim having excellent quality diagnosis as well as treatment facilities and competence. Skilled doctors and nurses; training facilities; medical school main advantage is competitive pricing

Cebu Doctor’s Hospital is presently the only hospital with immediate intention to offer its services internationally. Other hospitals feel they need more time to prepare themselves better and to improve some conditions to meet international standards

Hospitals need to define precisely their service portfolio (such as cosmetic surgery, transplants, dentistry, ophthalmology, etc) for foreign patients and identify services they need from other sector suppliers examine if Cebu City hospitals can specialize in a set of selected medical services in order to create a clear profile for Cebu City as a health destination examine how external wellness services from spas and resorts can be integrated into medical treatment packages

infrastructure hospitals are not yet accredited by DOH / DOT for medical tourism. They are still in the process of complying with the requirements.

discuss accreditation with stakeholders and accrediting agencies DOH and DOT is Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation important? Can it be achieved?

support services administrative management of foreign patients (admission, documentation, billing, followup, etc) portability of medical insurance

definition of management needs and required resources need to negotiate and strike agreements with insurance companies (coordinated by DOH) coordinate with national policy

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2.1.2 Conclusions and Further Recommendations Although the general market situation for medical tourism to the Philippines seems very promising, it is not known how strong the demand is for the various treatments or for medical services offered in Cebu City. It seems that hospitals in the National Capital Region (NCR) have progressed more in exporting their services compared to Cebu City hospitals. Is it possible to gain from their experience? Is it possible to cooperate with one or more other hospitals to extract synergies? Cebu City’s health sector feels that the local health industry is disadvantaged by the Government and that it can walk alone on the tourism road. At this point (few stakeholders are ready for business) it is recommended to seek out alliances outside Cebu City. At present, the Cebu Doctor’s Hospital expresses very strong interest in offering some selected services to foreign patients while other hospitals indicate a need for more time to prepare for it. Perhaps more discussions among the hospitals (and, as indicated above, tour operators and hotels or resorts) are necessary to find a common approach and time planning. A larger number of medical tourists is needed to make Cebu a veritable health tourism destination. And only then, a concerted and publicly sponsored marketing programme for health tourism might be considered. It seems more likely and easier to gain a larger number of patients in the area of noninvasive medicine compared with a few individual patients for highly invasive operations. In other words, medical tourism can only play a significant economic role if there is a steady and significant flow of tourists who use also services outside the hospital. As a first step, it is recommended to intensify the discussion and to involve other relevant partners in Cebu and, if needed, also from elsewhere. A broad debate is necessary to identify products, strategic options, partnerships and a step-by-step approach. SMEDSEP and DTI could be instrumental in initiating this process and in its followup, for example through a series of workshops and symposia. Furthermore, it is recommended to gain first hand experience from best practice in the Philippines and abroad. This also includes to actively seek information, knowledge and partners to further professionalize stakeholders.

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2.2 Spa and Wellness Tourism Cebu City Wellness tourism has become the success story in the global tourism trade in the last decade. Although spas have been known since Roman times and the spa tradition has been cultivated over centuries, a new era of wellness travel began with the development of spa resorts in Europe, North America and Asia. While the cures in 20C aimed at restoring the physical health through a lengthy series of physiotherapy and medical treatments, modern wellness packages aim at the overall wellbeing of people. Physical and mental recreation is seen complementary and treatments include a large scope of physical, spiritual and holistic activities. The industry has shown an amazing degree of creativity and skilfulness to attract client’s interest for it. Spas are now an integral part of many holiday resorts and the large international hotel chains are upgrading their spas to luxury temples with their own trademark. All market trends indicate that the tourist demand for wellness services will continue to rise. More importantly, a strong growth in demand is expected in Asian source markets as consumer affordability for upmarket travel rises and more short holiday trips will be undertaken. The International Spa Association distinguishes between Club Spa Cruise Ship Spa Day Spa Destination Spa Medical Spa Minerals Springs Spa and Resort / Hotel Spa.

Spas are fairly common in the Philippines and also in Cebu City. One can find more than 200 day spas and small massage parlours which are frequented by the local population and, partly, also by tourists. Upmarket day spas receive a more significant number of tourists (Japanese, Koreans) for treatment, mostly via tour agencies and guides. Hotels and resorts on Mactan Island operate spas in various categories of class and size. Chi –The Spa at Shangri-La and Mogabo Springs, the Spa at the Plantation Bay Resort offer wellness services at the highest level. Altogether, Cebu City and Mactan Island possess a broad offer of day and resort spas.

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VC - Spa and Wellness Tourism- Cebu

Figure 2 Value Chain Spa and Wellness Tourism Cebu City

• market research information

• image creation • packaging • sales

Health conscious international tourist • 40 + age group

medium or high income

• trendsetters • corporate

market

Transport • international • ground

transport

• accom-modation

• catering

Spa applications • healthcare or

therapist • sport activities • mind oriented • exercise • healthy living

• organize excursions

• perform events

• provide recreation

Spa resorts

Outbound tour operators

DOT / marketing agency

Travel agencies

Airline

Cruise companies

Inbound tour operator

Hotel, resort

Restaurant

Hotel, resort

Destination or medical spa

Day spa

Health or Wellness practitioners and trainers

Site and event operators

Inbound tour Operator

Provincial / local tourism office

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Table 2 Critical Issues Spa and Wellness Tourism Cebu City

Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


product and destination marketing sale and distribution

Cebu City’s tourism offices Spa resorts and hotels

wellness tourism can hardly be promoted if wellness is only a side product of a beach or leisure holiday Resorts only promote their own spa in the resort. Low occupancy rate of spas, critical return of investment Day spas have difficulties in attracting tourists for various reasons (large number, security concerns questionable reputation, hygiene)

Ideally, to identify a Filipino or Cebuano wellness branding which has a specific relation to the region the aim is that tourists associate Cebu with wellness and health. A new motive for travel is being created a stand alone spa product brings additional and broader marketing potential and allows better use of facilities examine agreements with hotels. Is there an opportunity for tour operators? Needed are packages which include transport and treatment as Japan and Korea are the main markets, research on the market profile for wellness travel is needed China, Europe, the elderly in general

product scope and value

resorts and day spas

excellent value for service

although many different treatments are on offer, the spa concepts are limited to visits of up to three hours

it is imperative to extend the product offer to full day and several day spa packages. Various possibilities - identification of additional services for larger packaging. Packages can include physical treatments, relaxation and meditation, sports and activities, lecture on medicine and healthy lifestyle, cosmetics, healthy cooking and cooking classes - comprehensive thematic spa packages (example Ayurveda in Sri Lanka, India)

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Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


- practice of Philippine signature treatments (hilot and similar) to create local brand Cebu City needs a medical spa which put the emphasis on physical regeneration and / or stress management, healthy lifestyle, beauty care study tour to existing medical spa in the Philippines to learn about different spa concepts examine if medical waters and mud can be made available and used (imported from other sources in the Philippines) consider a product development workshop or hiring a recognized spa expert for preparing a product strategy

product organization and packaging

resort spas spas target only their resort clientele

assessment of product concept: Do resorts want to market their spa to nonresident tourists? are tour operators interested in selling spa packages to the general public and to tourists after arrival ? attract additional health professionals to allow more diverse packages: nutritionists, doctors, psychologists, authors, food experts, entertainment, etc

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2.2.1 Conclusions and further recommendations Given the long tradition of spas in Cebu, stakeholders have developed substantial expertise and professionalism in this field. The quality of spas is often comparable to other tourism destinations in Asia. One can observe that not only particularly day but also resort spas are subjected to heavy competition in this buyer’s market. Probably, the uniformity of products exacerbates competition and the spas must sharpen their specific profile. It seems that a large part of tourists in Cebu City are not adequately reached by spa marketing. Opening spa resorts for external clients, striking sale agreements with hotel and resort management and involving tour operators could immediately increase business volume. For Cebu City to become a proper spa destination, it is important to considerably diversify wellness products and services. Diversification should be geared at introducing new wellness elements, involve additional wellness expertise and experts and then develop additional packages to address more and new target groups. A medical spa would add an important element for Cebu City’s future health tourism branding. As a medium term alternative, the tourism trade could consider putting together wellness packages which address the wellness client and which can be marketed as a stand alone product. SMEDSEP / DTI could be instrumental in bringing stakeholders together for this exercise and perhaps facilitate an exchange or study tour with best-practice spas elsewhere.

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3 Bohol Province 3.1 Value Chain Analysis Ecotourism

Bohol has been designated a tourism development area with priority consideration by national and regional master plans. The Bohol province, with one of its major islands, Panglao, boasts of numerous fine sand beaches, excellent diving sites and a large variety of ecotourism and cultural heritage sites. A new tourism master plan has recently been submitted to the provincial government for approval. In the past years, Bohol has registered the highest growth rates in tourist arrivals in Region 7, followed by Cebu, Negros Oriental and Siquijor. In 2004, Bohol registered 161 000 visitors of which 27 000 were foreigners. East Asia with 10 000 and Europe with 7000 visitors were the main source markets. Future growth shall be stimulated by the Panglao Tourism Estate Development which set aside 2023 hectares for resorts, convention facilities, golf course, shopping and recreation facilities. Also planned is a new airport of international standard which shall haul in tourists from nearby Asian markets. With the growing number of visitor arrivals, demand for excursions and nature based activities will certainly increase. Following the DOT and DENR definition, ecotourism is considered a low impact, environmentally sound and community participatory tourism activity in a given natural environment that enhances the conservation of biophysical and cultural diversity, promotes environmental understanding and education, and yields socioeconomic benefits to the concerned community. The whole island province of Bohol is a designated ecotourism site. To further stress the significance of Bohol in this market segment, the island has been designated an ecotourism banner site (national best practise). Bohol is recognized as an ecotourism destination because it is home to many nature sites with a particular high emotional value: the Chocolate Hills, the Tarsier Reserve, Loboc River and Pamilacan Island. Many other nature and cultural heritage sites are marked in tourism brochures but only few of them seem to receive a tangible number of visitors. Rather popular is dolphin watching around Pamilacan Island and rafting on floating restaurants on the Loboc River. Other sites are rarely visited and only packaged on a tailor made basis by tour operators. Visitors can organize trips to places such as Cambuhat, Ubay, Inabanga, etc. Looking at the travel packages offered for Bohol, nature lovers can easily get disappointed and ask why this nature paradise is still so unprepared for visitors. Bohol does not possess a National Park (NIPA) or similar protected areas. Some small islands have been categorized as wilderness areas; several mangrove

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forests are also protected. NonNIPAS areas include various nature and cultural heritage sites. It seems that Bohol and Panglao silently agreed on job sharing: Panglao receives, accommodates and entertains tourists while Bohol wants to keep its secret charm for briefly visiting tourists. The majority of tourists to Bohol are day visitors from Cebu who book one of the standard bus excursions to the Chocolate Hills and Loboc River. Tourists residing in Panglao seem to leave fewer footprints in Bohol. Bohol faces the challenge to turn from an excursion site into a tourist destination which means that guests stay for several days on the island. This goal could be achieved with a major product offensive campaign and a better coordination among key stakeholders. Bohol has the rare chance to profile itself as the Philippine ecotourism destination if it lives up to that promise and becomes an innovation leader. Although on different levels of development, Bohol and Siquijor share the same problem: the lack of marketable ecotourism products. Bohol has the advantage of a dynamic growth of visitor arrivals and a very large pool of nature attractions to be brought to the marketplace.

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VC - Ecotourism - Bohol

Figure 3 Value Chain Ecotourism Bohol

• create image in markets

• information • distribution network • Packaging • sales

• overseas discovery tourists

• students + backpackers

• day visitors from resorts

• divers • nature lovers

Outbound tour operators


Airline

• international

transport • ground transport

Ferry / shipping companies

Local tour companies

• accommodation • catering

Resort / hotel

Home stays

Restaurant

• development of nature sites and activities

• cultural performances • meeting people and

country • organization of

educational programmes

Ecotourism site operator

Resort / hotel


NGOs / local communities / guides


Dive shops

Travel agencies

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Table 3 Critical Issues Ecotourism in Bohol

Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


markets and consumers ecotourism brand

operators inbound operators

(foreign) resort owners have good market relation with their respective home countries

tourists generally book resort vacation directly with the resort. Booking is mostly done directly and through Internet. Travel guide books are also important sources of information. Foreign expatriates living in the Philippines are an important target group. No ecotourism package available (except diving), only day excursions which are sold locally

nature trips and packages are needed for the market clear nature tourism branding for Bohol Bohol based and Philippine tour operators to get involved in packaging ecotourism destination

information

tourism offices, Rrsorts

prepare flyers on nature sites and hiking guides more information on excursions in resorts provision of information at nature sites (unstaffed info points, flyers, signages)

ecotourism product

little diversity in nature sites and activities for tourists lack of quality products and services

product development workshop with site operators and tour companies follow up of DED workshop on ecotourism implement relevant part of Bohol Tourism Strategy engagement of service providers to advise developers and community groups and NGOs in preparing nature sites for tourists and in training local managers and guides

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Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


familiarize with best practice projects in the Philippines involvement of tour operators in site development organisation of a quality workshop for site managers, guides and Bohol resorts dstribution of manuals for ecotourism site management

resorts resorts, hotels, homestays

little motivation for ecological resort operation despite water shortage and high energy costs

roundtable workshop (experience, opportunities, problems, action fields, external financing) identification of pilot projects in alternative sources of energy, reduction of waste and pollution, use of local products and materials

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3.2 Conclusions and Further Recommendations Bohol has all the potential for a high value ecotourism destination although not everybody understands the same under ecotourism. Positions differ between leaving the island in its natural state and prepare it for tourists. A well conceived and monitored ecotourism development takes both positions into account but gives priority to maintain the natural attractions and resources intact. Bohol’s ecotourism potential can be tapped through a series of practical measures • a handful of attractive nature sites in various parts of the island can be

prepared and packaged to receive visitors and provide an interesting nature experience while maintaining its natural environment. Several sites are currently under preparation but concerns are expressed about professional management and client orientation (a larger offer of sites will better distribute visitor flows and visitor expenditure)

• diversification of sites and nature experience: from passive sightseeing to hiking, learning about nature and culture, experiencing challenges

• emphasis on sports and adventure activities: kayaking, biking, spelunking, caving, trekking, etc

• inclusion of country life in itineraries and packages such as rice farms, aquaculture, fisheries, fiestas, weddings, ....

• spread accommodation facilities and visitor centres gradually all around the island

• tour operators need to be involved to add a market based service concept and to substantially increase package sales

• follow up on programmes and activities in favour of Bohol proposed by the medium term Regional Development Plan 2004 - 2010 (Banacon Island Tourism Development Project, Anda Beach Development, Ubay Agri Park)

• implementation of the Bohol Tourism Strategy once approved. The next step should put the emphasis on bringing together suppliers and operators to jointly engage in extending the limited ecotourism offer and to better commercialise it. External expertise could contribute in bringing in innovative product concepts and sensitize on quality improvement. It is also recommended to initiate roundtable meetings in the field of ecological resort construction and operation. Bohol should aim at becoming a model destination for an ecological tourism industry.

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VC - Ecotourism - Siquijor

Figure 4 Value Chain Ecotourism Siquijor

• provide information • packaging • commercialize

distribution • overseas

discovery tourists

• students + backpackers

• day visitors from resorts

• divers Outbound tour

operators


Airlines

• international

transport • transport to

island • internal

transport

Shipping companies


• accommodation • catering

Resorts

Home stays

Restaurant

• development of nature sites and activities

• cultural performances • meeting people and

country • organization of

educational programmes

Ecotourism site operator

Resort / hotel


NGOs / local communities / guides


Dive shops

Provincial tourism office

Resorts

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Table 4 Critical Issues Ecotourism Bohol

Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


access provincial government, tour operators resort owners

air field and facilities exist

no regular air traffic; access by sea unreliable, weather dependent

stakeholder commitment necessary for tackling the problem inviting airlines to assess traffic operations

ecotourism sites site operators, local communities

nature sites offer little activities and guest involvement

site preparation for guest activities such as hiking, trekking, animal watching, botanical tours, cultural tours, etc familiarize with best practice projects in the Philippines follow up and implementation of Siquijor Tourism Master Plan

products and packages

tour operators site operators

only standard island round tour is offered

develop new tour formulas, thematic tours invite external tour operators on familiarization trip

resort operation resort owners water and electricity problems

introduction of ecological resort construction and operation roundtable workshop (on experiences, opportunities, problems, action fields, external financing) provision of management training to resort managers

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5 Siquijor Province 5.1 Value Chain Analysis Ecotourism in Siquijor Province The island of Siquijor is often referred to as a secret tip for Philippine travel destinations, as a hideaway from the noise and city hectic. In fact, Siquijor’s tourism development has not picked up yet and less than a dozen of, usually small, resorts provide accommodation for guests. From a total of 11 200 visitors in 2006, 3200 come from abroad. European tourists, led by Germans, rank on top of the international visitor statistics. Japanese or Korean visitors, a prime clientele in many other Philippine destinations, have not yet discovered Siquijor. In 2005, a tourism master plan was prepared for the island but little follow up has taken place since. Siquijor’s beaches enjoy a good reputation in the region, but beaches are not really a scarce commodity in the Visayas. For diving, the island receives dive visitors from Dumaguete City who want to discover the sites in Villanueva and San Juan. Siquijor’s tourism product consists mainly of a handful of resorts near San Juan and a number of mostly isolated nature sites around the island such as Larena and Lazi beaches, Cantabon cave, Cambugahay Falls, Mount Bandilaan National Park, Tulapos Marine Sanctuary and Guiwanon Spring Park. A few religious monuments from the Spanish times complete the array of attractions. Visitors to Siquijor must themselves plan and organise their visit. In a half day island tour, one can make a stop at almost all attractions. For a fine ecotourism product one does not need necessarily a large number of nature sites, but one needs opportunities for visitors to discover and enjoy Siquijor’s splendid ambiance. Very few such activities are currently offered to visitors and it is not surprising therefore to see most tourists spending their time in their resorts. Many visitors come only for the day from Dumaguete City and return there in the evening. But another group consists of dedicated Siquijor lovers who find their way to the island and often stay for a week or more. Younger visitors are keen in exploring the island. Older ones seek more the tranquillity. Because of the difficult access (ferry travel and time consuming travel to and within the island), there is only a limited market potential. Siquijor needs a regular air service from Manila or Cebu for tourism to take off the ground. The existing (asphalted) air strip seems sufficient for flight operations, but airlines have declined interest in the past because of low demand expectations. Tourism stakeholders appear to be ambivalent with regard to connecting Siquijor better with other transport hubs. While some express strong interest in air connection, others prefer to keep the island more in seclusion. But under the present access conditions and visitor arrivals, it seems fairly difficult to expand the local ecotourism offer significantly.

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5.2 Conclusions and Further Recommendations The future prospects for tourism in Siquijor depend strongly on how the access to the island is organised. Under the present conditions, investment and tourist arrivals can only grow moderately. The small number of visitors, in turn, discourages developers and local communities from spending time and money to prepare nature sites for tourists. The Siquijor Tourism Master Plan spells out in much detail proposals for projects and initiatives at both provincial and local levels. It is recommended to review the Master Plan and to initiate its implementation. As in Bohol, Siquijor has the chance to position itself as a top or model ecotourism destination, if a concerted effort is made to diversify, to connect nature sites and to offer an attractive range of outdoor activities. If tourists gain the possibility to experience the island they are more likely to stay longer and to return. An action plan should focus on materializing the ecotourism experience and, at the same time, boost the image as an ecological resort. Because Siquijor has only a relatively small number of tourism stakeholders, a strong alliance and cooperation among them is essential like forming a Siquijor Tourism Association. Several other comments made in the previous chapter on Bohol are also relevant to Siquijor.

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6 Negros Oriental 6.1 Education Tourism in Negros Oriental Negros Oriental is widely known as a destination blessed with nature and excellent diving spots. Apo Island has reached an international acclaim for its dive sites. Hotels and resorts are lined up along the coast to serve not only leisure tourists but also business clients and visitors who come to study, work or do business with universities in Dumaguete City and its environs. Dumaguete City is also the entry point for goods and travellers to Siquijor. In the fields of diving and leisure tourism Negros Oriental is in strong competition with many other Philippine destinations.2.It is therefore an appropriate strategy to diversify its tourism industry and explore opportunities such as education tourism. A prospering university town is often the catalyst for attracting other industries, such as media, technology or research centres. Four universities, colleges and other education establishments are responsible for Negros Oriental’s reputation as one the most recognized places for higher education in the Philippines. Dumaguete City, the provincial capital, is naturally the seat of most establishments of which Silliman University is widely known in the Philippines and abroad. All universities offer a broad range of academic study programmes including many master degree programmes. Universities proudly present their centers of academic excellence and boast also of special study programmes such as marine biology, geodetics, etc. It is the universities that shape Dumaguete City’s street life, its character as a student town and the local economy. There seems to be almost permanent events in the city: alumni reunions, graduation festivities, conferences, etc. The city intensely experiences the absence of students during semester breaks. Approximately 15 percent of all students come from outside the province. The number of foreign students enrolled in Dumaguete City’s universities is still relatively low due to many barriers such as recognition of certificates, synchronisation of studies with their home universities, language requirements, appropriate accommodation, etc. Silliman University currently registers 281 foreign students. Universities generally strive for internationalization for the following reasons

1) stimulation of the quality of education through a lively exchange with international partners

2) offering instructors an ambitious and recognized working environment and

2 Negros Occidental and Negros Oriental have a very similar tourism structure. It is strongly recommended

to explore opportunities for cooperation such as in joint tourism marketing.

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3) Generation of revenues from foreign guest students to improve the university’s financial structure.

Promoting education tourism is not only on the agenda of universities but receives strong support from the Province of Negros Oriental and the capital city, Dumaguete. Education tourism in Negros Oriental could be categorized as follows

academic conferences, symposia and international meetings foreign guest students enrolled for one or more semesters foreign guest students participating in summer programmes foreign guest teachers instructing or researching foreign guest students learning English as a second language.

Stakeholders are aware that education tourism is a new business opportunity which has not been actively pursued although it has always happened because many students come from other provinces. Strengthening the international environment, however, is a different challenge. Building up a new type of tourism requires strategic thinking and a step-by-step approach. In this initial phase, it seems important to put the focus on the most critical aspects and to develop a vision for such a project.

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VC – Education Tourism – Negros Oriental

Figure 5 Value Chain Education Tourism Negros Oriental

• information • networking with

partner institutions • marketing and sales

• International academic staff

• students for special programmes amd study courses

• students for summer courses

• participants in research conferences

• language students (Korea, China)

Academic institutions

Language tour operators

Airlines

• international

transport • local

transport

Shipping companies

Local transports

• accommodat

ion • catering • organization

of stay

Campus dormitories

Boarding houses

Hotels

• conduct of study programme

• course organization and delivery

• provision of student assistance

• conference organization

University, college

Language schools

High schools, colleges

Travel agencies

Restaurants

• conduct excursions

• organize events

• organize meeting people programmes

University, college

Private language schools


Site operators

Inbound Tour Operator

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Table 6 Critical Issues Education Tourism Negros Oriental

Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


markets, marketing

Universities colleges DTI

no substantial information available on possible target groups and markets

best practice information gathering, discussing topic with partner schools abroad, knowledge exchange with other universities in Philippines listing of all international contacts and partnerships

product: fields of education tourism

Universities colleges

no thorough identification of strengths and capacities

stakeholders have different interests and objectives. Identification of common interests and ways of cooperation among all or some establishments student summer programmes and English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction seem the most promising areas with a wider impact and a short or medium term opportunity. Nursing education could be another opportunity Consortium of Higher Education in Negros Oriental (CHENO) and DTI lead the process conduct workshops on strategy development. Definition of CHENO’s role as a strategy leader or alternatively create task force with broad support from stakeholders

concept and organization of study programme

universities colleges

study courses often not compatible between countries, certificates and credits not recognized

stakeholders should determine pilot programmes suitable for international students and academic staff development of standards with CHENO to recognize degrees or certificates

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Value Link

Stakeholder

Strengths

Constraints


organization of English language courses

universities, colleges

no regular courses yet Important to obtain market intelligence from Korea, the most promising source market (DTI, DOT?) - a more comprehensive market study would be particularly useful (key information gap) explore partnership with private schools or agencies in Korea identification of language centers and agencies in Korea and perhaps China identification of weaknesses and missing links to host language students examine best practice cases in the Philippines

infrastructure Accommodation

universities colleges provincial government Dumaguete City

completely insufficient accommodation capacity for foreign students (as well as Filipino students)

are student hostels an attractive investment? how is this problem solved in other provinces? is a public - private partnership for investment feasible? cooperation (lease arrangement?) with resorts

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6.2 Conclusions and Further Recommendations The founding of the Consortium of Higher Education in Negros Oriental (CHENO) reflects the intention of stakeholders for an improved coordination of their activities. The Consortium could become the platform to further pursue the discussion on education tourism. It seems important at this point to bring this topic to a wider audience and to try to clarify individual and common interests. Ideally CHENO could assume the main promoter role. For this purpose it is advisable to invite other stakeholders as members such as the public administration and the representatives from the tourism trade. In case CHENO’s mission is incompatible with this new task, the creation of a special task force shall be considered. DTI’s further engagement is regarded as particularly useful and should be continued. A series of meetings or workshops on these issues should take place in the near future. From the different areas in education tourism it is recommended to put the immediate emphasis on English as a Second Language (ESL) and academic summer programmes. Several stakeholders are interested and competent in this field and could probably agree on an agenda. Courses could materialize relatively soon. A better understanding of the markets (Korea and China probably) is essential and the preparation of a market study should be explored. ESL courses are already conducted in Dumaguete City but their number could be considerably increased. This area appears to be the most promising and attractive from a business perspective. These courses would be instrumental to spread Dumaguete City’s reputation in higher education abroad and facilitate later an engagement in the other fields of education tourism. The growing international reputation would certainly spur the interest of foreign student and teachers to work and enrol on regular programmes. Some universities or colleges may have their own interests and intentions (for example only a few are engaged in academic research and therefore interested in international research conferences). They should be encouraged in pursuing these interests. But priority should be given to those projects from which several stakeholders can benefit. It could also be useful to take up contact with Bacolod, Negros Occidental where an ESL school started operations recently to exchange information. In general, it is suggested to explore the possibility of a common tourism marketing strategy with Negros Occidental.

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7 Summary of Main Conclusions and Recommendations

Main Conclusions Main Recommendations Next steps

Subsector 1: Medical tourism in Cebu Cebu hospitals possess the resources, the facilities, the skills and the competence for venturing into medical tourism. Their main competitive advantage is price Cebu hospitals now lack experience in medical tourism Cebu hospitals lack the necessary marketing channels different industry partners are needed for offering quality services

gradual buildup of experience through offering of selected services and sufficient preparation for it seek cooperation with other hospitals in Cebu and Manila to facilitate market entry establishment of partnerships with clinics, doctors, commercial agencies and travel agencies abroad cooperation with hotels and tour operators

definition of appropriate service portfolio assessment of internal management organisation and marketing competence definition of priority markets and target marketing strategy roundtable meeting with industry partners

Subsector 2: Medical spa and wellness tourism in Cebu Cebu resorts and spas can benefit from the wellness trend; attractive market opportunities certain uniformity of product

diversification of wellness products and

product development workshop or concept

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wellness is only a side product in the vacation package insufficient and fragmented promotion of wellness product and wellness destination

inclusion of innovative wellness services wellness as a stand alone product. Preparation of wellness packages (two - five nights) for international marketing establishment of a medical spa preparation and implementation of promotion strategy

product development workshop or concept examine investor interest in project market profiling local (in Cebu and Visayas) marketing campaign for spa products involve local tour operators in marketing and sales

Subsector 3: Ecotourism in Bohol

Bohol possesses excellent resources for ecotourism; government and tourism trade consider Bohol as an ecotourism champion weak commercial ecotourism offer, few packages available ecological resort management could boost

development of new ecotourism activities and microdestinations, site development concerted packaging and marketing efforts; strengthen Bohol ecotourism destination brand identification of pilot projects in energy saving, reduction of waste and pollution, etc

cooperation among resorts, tourism office, tour operators, local communities priority site development and quality improvement of existing sites promotion of Bohol and Panglao resorts workshop in Panglao, Bohol on opportunities

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Bohol’s image

for ecological resort management

Subsector 4: Ecotourism in Siquijor

a charming small island destination whose tourism opportunities are severally hampered by difficult access and limited ecotourism offer regular air connections are needed lack of ecotourism activities and packages opportunity for ecological resort operation

stakeholders need to agree on future position of tourism stimulation of site and product development identification of pilot projects

stakeholder meetings, proposals to airlines identification of a few new pilot sites resorts and tour operators prepare new packages workshop with resorts, local government, DTI

Subsector 5: Education Tourism in Negros Oriental

Dumaguete City and Negros Oriental have good conditions for education tourism, but a clear road map is needed colleges and universities need to build up competencies and experience

clarification of most appropriate type of education tourism adoption of a step-by-step approach

strategy workshop definition of CHENOS’s role development of pilot programme

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seize on immediate opportunities in English language training

gathering of market intelligence promotion of English Language courses

market studies in Korea and China learning from experience already made in the Philippines workshop on market access to Korea, China (with tour operators and experts)

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8 Workshop in Cebu City on Initial Findings of the Mission On 3 September 2007, the Consultant presented the initial findings from the mission to representatives from all provinces visited. Although some of them had to travel far, the workshop registered a very good participation (over 50 people) from all provinces. This presence and the very active participation during the workshop reflected the interest and motivation of stakeholders in the topic. With the help of the VCA, some participants could see the weaknesses of their business environment from a new perspective calling it a wake up call and urging participants for immediate action. The strength of the VCA, the identification of the most critical elements in the business process, helped participants to focus on the key issues. It also became evident that tourism stakeholders want to take advantage of any opportunity and forum to raise their concerns and promote the interests of the industry. After discussing the findings of the Consultant, the workshop participants broke out in five (5) groups to discuss some of the identified critical issues. The purpose of that exercise was to start discussing and debate for finding answers to some of the critical issues. Specific questions were prepared for each group. As an exemple, these were the questions for the Education Tourism Group:

- Which fields of research lend opportunities for academic meetings and conferences?

- What services can universities and colleges provide? - Which tourism services need to be brought in from other service providers? - Which role and tasks can CHENO assume? - How to solve the accommodation problem? - Which opportunities exist for private language schools

By steering the group discussion on a few, but very crucial issues, the participants could see the benefit of the VCA. With this experience, the working groups will find it easier to continue and deepen the discussion after their return home. Many more stakeholders (as was possible in the Cebu City workshop) need then to participate in the discussion in order to give consideration to a more complete spectrum of opinions. The groups established in Cebu City could take the responsibility for mobilising the discussion in their provinces.

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9 DTI’s Role in the Value Chain Process The DTI Regional Office in Cebu prepared the Consultant’s field visits and a DTI staff member accompanied him on that itinerary. DTI runs provincial offices in all provinces which organized the respective work programs and arranged meetings with stakeholders. Provincial offices participated in meetings or were briefed about the results by the Consultant. The entire field visit including meetings with stakeholders and site visits were jointly undertaken with colleagues from the DTI. The fact finding approach and the methodology used in interviews provided learning opportunities for DTI staff. After each field visit, an internal evaluation of the results took place. DTI’s presence at both the regional and the provincial levels and the Department’s mission to promote trade and industry affairs make it a valuable partner and stakeholder in the Tourism Value Chain Process. DTI is in an excellent position to bring stakeholders, the public administration and other industry representatives together, to moderate debates and workshops and initiate follow up actions. A sound knowledge of the functioning of the tourism sector and familiarity with international tourism would improve DTI’s competence in the VCA and the following moderation. But it is barely possible for DTI to develop a sufficient knowledge for each of the four subsectors and additional external expertise might be necessary in solving critical issues. It is strongly recommended that DTI and SMEDSEP accompany and support the discussion and the work process in the provinces. Because none of the examined subsectors is sufficiently organised locally, the Value Chain Process requires external moderation for its success. The proposed workshops and roundtables can be the starting point for DTI’s and SMEDSEP cooperation with the subsectors.

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ANNEX Annex 1: Mission Programme (as undertaken by the Consultant)

Date

Time Meeting with Organisation, Place

19 August 2007, Sun (UNIFORM)

Travel to Philippines

20 August, Mon

Travel to Cebu

1700 Rita Pilarca GTZ SMEDSEP 21 August , Tue

1000 Asteria Caberte (Regional Director DTI), Laura Rollan, Rose Mae Quinanola, DTI

DTI DOT

1300 Dr Cora Kintanar, DOH Rita Pilarca,GTZ Rowena Montillo, DOT Esperanza Melgar Nelia Navarro, DTI Cebu Director Laura Rollon, DTI Region VC Coordinator Maria Eloida Cantona DTI VC Coordinator Marivic Aguilar

DTI, DOT, DOH

1600 Johnny Siao The Spa at Cebu 22 August Wed

0900 Oscar Tuason, Administrator Cebu Doctors University Hospital

1100 Joanne Cosin, Director Patient Services Chong Hua Hospital 1300 Joy Dompor Serenity Spa 1600 Jopy Lopez, Sharon Samarista Shangri-la Resort 1730 Nenette Castillon, Dianne Gandionco,

Efren Belarmino Plantation Bay

23 August Thur

Morning Study of documents SMEDSEP Office

1400h Ferry transfer to Tagbilaran, Bohol 1800 Nanette Arbon, Provincial Director DTI Bohol 24 August Fri 0900 Maria Fe Dominise Bohol Investment Promotion

Center 1000 Oroncia Balio, Joyceline Cabaruz Bohol Tourism Office 1130 Obdulio Caturza Bohol Association of Hotels,

Resorts and Restaurants 1330 Dennis Hora Panglao Tourism Committee 1430 Frank Montero, Owner Alona Beach Resort 1600 Vicky Wallace Bohol Bee Farm Resort 1800 Walter Sultan Travel Village & Tours,

Tagbilaran 25 August Sat 0900 Nonette Madrinan - Bolo Dagohoy World Travel,

Tagbilaran 0945 Visit Corella Tarsier Sanctuary 1130 Tess Sumalpong Loboc Riverwatch Floating

Resto 1200 Loboc River Tour

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1300 Visit Bohol Heritage sites 1600 Ferry transfer return to Cebu 26 August Sun

Analysis of documentation Parklane Hotel, Cebu City

27 August Mon

0900 Travel to Bacolod, Negros Occidental

1100 Meeting with Ruth Cruz NITI (SPELL OUT) 1500 Travel to Dumaguete City, Negros

Oriental

28 August Tue

0830 Javier Fortunato, Olivet Sumido? DTI, Negros Oriental

0900 Emilio Macias, Provincial Governor, Marian Villegas, Dindo Generoso

Provincial Governor. and Board Members

1100 Sr Maria Nilda Masirag, President St Paul University, Dumaguete City

1230 Sun Jae Park, Language School Dumaguete City 1330 Agustin Perdices, Mayor; Rotelio

Lumjod, one City Councilor Dumaguete City

1530 Marina Fuentes, Sandra Fuentes, Orient Winds Tour Company

Dumaguete City

1700 Henry Sojor, President, Negros Oriental State University

29 August Wed

00930 Ben Malayang III, President Silliman University, Dumaguete City

1100 Dinno Depositario, Dr Meki Foundation University, Dumaguete City

1400 Travel to Siquijor 1530 Nimfa Virtucio, Provincial Director, DTI Siquijor 1600 Josette Armirola, Provincial Tourism

Office Siquijor

1600 Field visit Siquijor, Ecotourism sites and resorts

30 August Thur

0830 Diosita Tia, Orientwind Travel & Tours San Juan, Siquijor

0915 Helen Gerdin, Coral Cay Resort San Juan 1000 Arlene Mack, Royal Cliff Resort San Juan 1100 Gerry Sumagang, GL Shipping Lines Siquijor 1130 Arthur Chan, Board Member Siquijor Province 1230 Joy Ericsson, Director, Coco Grove

Beach Resort San Juan

1400 Dondeezco Beach Resort Siquijor 1700 Mike Butler, President, San Juan Beach

Corporation Dumaguete City

31 August Fri 0900 Travel to Manila 1400 Debriefing GTZ Manila 01 September Sat

Preparation workshop Cebu City

02 September Sun

Preparation workshop Cebu City

03 September Mon

1100 Workshop on Value Chain Analysis of Tourism Subsectors, Marriott Hotel

Cebu City

4 September Tue

0600 Transfer to Manila and return travel to Germany

48

Annex 2: Contacts (Persons met by the Consultant)

Person

Organisation

Rita Pilarca GTZ SMEDSEP Cebu Anja Gomm GTZ Manila Asteria C Caberte, Regional Director, Region 7 Department for Trade and Industry DTI Cebu Esperanza Melgar, Chief Trade and Industry Development

DTI

Laura Rollan, Senior Trade and Industry Development Specialist

DTI

Rose Mae Quinanola, Chief Regional Industry Development Division

DTI

Nelia Navarro DTI Maria Eloida Cantona DTI Marivic Aguilar DTI Maria Elena Arbon, Provincial Director DTI, Bohol Lucille Autentico, VC Coordinator DTI, Bohol Maria Fe Dominise, Officer In Charge Bohol Investment Promotion Center Javier Fortunato, Provincial Director DTI, Negros Oriental Araceli Maypa, Division Chief DTI, Negros Oriental Olivet Sumido, Value Chain Coordinator DTI, Negros Oriental Nimfa Virtucio, Provincial Director DTI, Siquijor Marcelina Abing, Value Chain Coordinator DTI, Siquijor Dr Cora Kintanar, Chief LHAO Department of Health DOH, Cebu Patria Aurora Roa, Region 7 Director Department of Tourism DOT, Cebu Rowena Monterillo DOT, Cebu Johnny Siao, Owner, Director The Spa at Cebu Oscar Tuason, Administrator Cebu Doctors’ Univversity Hospital Joanne Cosin, Director Patient Services Chong Hua Hospital, Cebu City Joy Dompor Serenity Spa, Cebu City Jopy Lopez, Director of Marketing Shangri-La Mactan Resort & Spa Sharon, Samarista, Director of Communications Shangri-La Mactan Resort & Spa Efren Belarmino, General Manager Plantation Bay Resort & Spa, Mactan Nenette Castillon, Spa Manager Plantation Bay Resort & Spa, Mactan Dianne Gandionco, Public Relations Associate Plantation Bay Resort & Spa, Mactan Oroncia Balio, Head Bohol Provincial Tourism Office Joyceline Cabaruz Bohol Provincial Tourism Office Obdulio Caturza Bohol Association of Hotels, Resorts and

Restaurants Dennis Hora, Chairman Panglao Tourism Committee Frank Montero, Owner, Director Alona Beach Resort, Panglao Vickky Wallace, Owner, Director Bohol Bee Farm Resort Walter Sultan, Owner Travel Village & Tours, Bohol Tourism Council Nonette Madrinan-Bolo, Manager Dagohoy World Travel, Tagbilaran Tess Sumampong Loboc Riverwatch Floating Resto Ruth Cruz Negros Island Tourism Inc, Bacolod Emilio Macias II, Governor Provincial Government, Negros Oriental Mariant Villegas, Provincial Board Member Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental Dindo Generoso, Tourism Council, Provincial Government

Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental

Maritoni Mascardo, Operations Officer Provincial Tourism Office, Negros Oriental Myla Mae Bromo-Abellana, Senior Tourism Provincial Tourism Office, Negros Oriental

49

Operations Officer Sr Maria Nilda Masirag, President StPaul University, Dumaguete City Sun Jae Park, English Language School Dumaguete City Agustin Perdices, Mayor Dumaguete City Rotelio Lumjod, 1st City Councilor Dumaguete City Macrina Fuentes, Orient Winds Travel Dumaguete City Sanda Fuentes, Orient Winds Travel Dumaguete City Henry Sojor, President Negros Oriental State University Ben Malayang III, President Silliman University, Dumaguete City Dinno Depositario, Life & External Affairs, Vice President Student

Foundation University, Dumaguete City

Josette Armirola, Director Provincial Tourism Office, Siquijor Diosita Tia Orientwind Travel & Tours, Siquijor Helen Gerdin, Manager Coral Cay Resort, Siquijor Arlene Mack, Manager Royal Cliff Resort, Siquijor Gerry Sumasang, Director GL Shipping Lines, Siquijor Joy Ericsson, Director Coco Grove Beach Resort, San Juan Arthur Chan, Board Member, Chairman of Committee on Tourism

Siquijor

Mike Butler, President San Juan Beach Corporation, Dumaguete City

50

Annex 3: References Author Title

DOT, Philippines DOT Accreditation Rules and Regulations on Tertiary Hospitals for Medical Tourism

GTZ Global Health and International Negotiations Department of Foreign Affairs, GTZ Health, Wellness and Retirement, Stakeholder

Meeting, Cebu 2005 Rita Pilarca, SMEDSEP GTZ, 2007 Consultancy to Identify Possible Interventions to

Support Tourism Development in the Visayas DOT, 2005 Central Visayas Tourism Situationer DOT, Provincial Government Tourism Area Plan for the Province of Bohol Raphael Kaplinsky, Mike Morris A Handbook of Value Chain Research DOT Cebu – Resort and Heritage Destination DOT Your Guide to Bohol GTZ/DTI National Strategy and Policy Framework for

Cross Border Health and Wellness Professional Services, 2006

Ad de Bruijne Dumaguete: A University Town within the Central Visayas Region, 2000

DOT Philippine National Ecotourism Strategy Cebu Plus Tourism Core Group Vision 5 M2010 Astrid Bessler Facilitating the Setup of Negros Island Tourism

Inc (NITI), August 2006 GTZ Tourism Master Plan for Siquijor DED Documentation on Workshop Ecotourism in

Bohol Angeline Pauline Crystal Gonzalez Higher Education as an Industry: Its Impact on

the Local Economy of Dumaguete City, Philippines”

Manila OfficeGerman Development Center10F PDCP Bank CentreV A Rufino St cor L P Leviste StSalcedo Village, Makati City

Private Sector Promotion (SMEDSEP) ProgramGTZ Office Manila, P O Box 2218 MCPOMakati City 1228, PHILIPPINES

+63 2 812 [email protected]

G/F LDM BuildingLegaspi St cor M J Cuenco AveCebu City 6000, PHILIPPINES

+63 32 412 2256+63 32 254 [email protected]

SMEDSEP Cebu

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