Senate approved the proposed budget of the Department of Tourism (DOT) and its attached agencies for the 2026 fiscal year.
Both Senate Deputy Majority Leader Joseph Victor “JV” Ejercito and acting chairperson of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee Erwin Tulfo, who interpellated during the quick Senate plenary budget deliberation on Friday (Nov. 21), also conveyed their strong support for the DOT.
Under the National Expenditure Program (NEP) for 2026, the DOT is proposing a PHP3.718 billion budget for the agency. An amount of PHP3.19 billion is obligated to the Office of the Secretary, while attached agencies, Intramuros Administration (IA), the National Parks Development Committee (NPDC), and the Philippine Commission of Sports Scuba Diving (PCSSD) will have PHP159 million, PHP320 million, and PHP44.9 million, respectively.
“I’d like to reiterate my support as always to the Department of Tourism because, as I mentioned, this is the industry that can really help stimulate economic growth, especially in the midst of all these challenges that we are facing now,” Senator Ejercito said.
“I support the budget of DOT and other attached agencies, to wit,” Senator Tulfo also said after his period of interpellation, which touched on tourism roads and air connectivity.
Low-hanging fruit yet an economic pillar
With Senator Loren Legarda sponsoring the DOT budget for the Senate, the veteran lawmaker expounded on the achievements of the DOT under the leadership of Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco despite the agency’s meager operating budget almost every fiscal year.
“In terms of expenditure, inbound tourism spending in 2024 stood at P699.98 billion, up 0.4% from 2023 and already 116.66% recovered compared to pre-pandemic 2019, which was 600 billion [pesos]. Domestic tourism expenditure surged; tumaas po ng 3.159 trillion [pesos] in 2024, growing by 16.4% from 2023, and of course, fully recovering from the pre-pandemic 100.49% in 2019 levels. Overall, internal tourism expenditure, when you combine inbound and domestic, reached 3.859 trillion in 2024, marking a 13.1% growth from 2023 and surpassing the 2019 levels at 103.08% recovery,” Senator Legarda said.
She also explained how the tourism budget is incongruous with its contributions to the country’s economy and the people’s livelihood.
“In terms of employment, tourism employed 6.75 million workers in 2024, accounting for 13.8% of total employment with a 6.1% growth in 2023. But if you look at indirect employment, 16.4 million Filipinos are in the tourism industry. In terms of contribution to GDP, the tourism industry contributed 8.9% to the country’s GDP in 2024,” the senator expounded.
Budget increase for marketing and branding promotions
Furthermore, the senators continued to advocate for an increase in the budget of the Department, primarily to carry out its promotions mandate.
According to Senator Ejercito, the upper chamber had some amendments for marketing and branding promotions.
“One of the biggest amendments we did was for the marketing and branding. In recent years, the branding budget was cut from 1 billion [pesos], naging 200 million [pesos], and then, naging 100 million [pesos] in 2025. But, Mr. President. For this year’s NEP, this was increased to 500 million [pesos] and the Senate, through the Senate’s amendment to the committee’s recommendation, we have increased by another 500 million [pesos], so 1 billion [pesos] na po ang branding and marketing, so that’s good news for the Department of Tourism,” the Senator explained, who, is also a long been a partner of the DOT primarily in its motorcycle tourism advocacy.
“Mr. President, the rationale being, panay na tayo ano ngayon e, it’s bad news going to the international community. But I’m hoping that through proper promotion and branding and marketing, we’ll be able to counter these, and at least we can still encourage tourists to visit the country. Maganda naman talaga ang Pilipinas; kulang lang sa promotion, and as what Sec. Frasco said, “if you compare the marketing and branding and promotions budget of our DOT compared to ASEAN neighbors, we are a small fraction,” Senator Ejercito emphasized.
Senator Legarda then expounded: “I also wanted to say that when you compare our investment in tourism with our ASEAN neighbors, sila po times two, times five. Tayo po napakaliit at kasama na diyan ‘yung ating kakulangan. Let me just put on record: the Philippines operates with a marketing budget of only $52 million, while Thailand allocates $168 million, 3.2 [times] larger; Indonesia, $234 million, 4.5 [times] larger, and Malaysia $263 million, five times larger. This massive budget gap severely limits global visibility and competitiveness even though the Philippines delivers the highest yield per tourist, $2,055, and one of the best ROIs in ASEAN.”
Addressing and surpassing headwinds
During the plenary, the senators also raised several headwinds the tourism industry is facing which directly concern the leadership of Secretary Frasco.
Senator Tulfo focused on the matter about skyrocketing airfares and challenges in visiting local tourist destinations which are key factors in hounding a fraction of tourism development in the country.
“I am aware that the Department of Tourism has been doing its best to promote local tourism, Mr. President. Unfortunately, there are factors that prevent this local tourism to grow. Ang dahilan, Mr. President, ay nakikita po natin ay ‘yung expensive transportation going to certain areas. It is beyond the control of the Department of Tourism, ‘yung murang pamasahe, Mr. President,” he said.
Senator Legarda, as budget sponsor, answered that the DOT has long recognized this issue and has been working closely with all concerned national government agencies and partners from the private sector to be able to address the matter.
“The Department of Tourism recognizes that high air fares are a key deterrent to travel, and they are working closely with the Department of Transportation, Civil Aeronautics Board, DTI (Department of Trade and Industry), and the PCC (Philippine Competition Commission) to address this. The CAB (Civil Aeronautics Board), in consultation with DOT, is finalizing a code of conduct for online travel agencies to ensure transparency and fair pricing, aligning consumer protection under the internet transactions act and supporting PCC investigations on non-competitive airline practices. The Department has also engaged airlines such as Cebu Pacific, Philippine Airlines, Air Asia to explore ways to stabilize fares, particularly for key island destinations like Siargao. In partnership with DOTr (Department of Transportation) and CAB, DOT will launch a public information campaign to promote airfare transparency and help travelers find the best deals,” she said.
Senator Legarda also emphasized that several other headwinds do not only concern the DOT but also other government agencies, including the improvement and development of regional gateways, which directly concerns the DOTr.
This, after Senator Tulfo inquired about the efforts of the DOT in luring international air carriers to add flights to and from the Philippines to boost tourism.
“If there could be direct flights internationally, even for our Southeast Asian neighbors kasi nga hindi tayo landlocked like Indonesia or Singapore, Thailand, et cetera. Tayo kasi kailangan talaga lumipad. So, it would be dependent on the DOTr and its completion and rehabilitation of regional airports and the transformation of regional airports into an airport capable of accepting international flights,” Senator Legarda said.
“Alam ko ‘yung rail travel, I think, should also be looked into. I’d like to put on record as well the new international air routes that were done under the term of Sec. Frasco, through collaboration with the DOTr — Air Canada from Vancouver, Philippine Airlines from Danang and Sapporo, United Airlines from San Francisco, daily ito. Jetstar from Perth, three times a week. Air India from New Delhi, five times a week, and Viet Jet from Ho Chi Minh, five times weekly. Cebu Pacific [from] Ho Chi Minh, three times a week. Philippine Airlines [from] Ho Chi Minh, five times a week, Firefly, Kuala Lumpur, Jet Star, from Brisbane, three times a week, and PAL, there’s increased frequency, this is domestic, Manila-Kawayan, that’s daily for PAL, and domestic routes, Cebu-Catarman, three times a week, Cebu Pacific, Clark-El Nido, Clark-Coron, Clark-Masbate, Clark-Siargao, which is daily. These are new routes, both domestic and international, which the DOT had done in collaboration with the DOTr, Mr. President,” she added.
Grateful for the support
With these positive developments, Secretary Frasco expressed her profound gratitude to the Senate for rallying behind the DOT.
“We thank the Honorable Members of the Senate for recognizing the vital role of tourism in national development. The increased branding budget is not just an investment in marketing; it is an investment in jobs, livelihood, and the Filipino people. We commit to ensuring that every peso is used strategically, efficiently, and creatively to inspire the world to Love The Philippines,” she said.
Meanwhile, the budget will now be submitted to the Bicameral Conference Committee for deliberations of both the upper and lower chambers of Congress.
