THE DEPARTMENT of Tourism (DOT) is hoping that more tourism workers will be included in the A4 priority group for vaccination, for their invaluable work and service as frontliners.
In a news statement, Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat said, “We have asked Secretary Carlito Galvez Jr., the chief implementor of the country’s Covid-19 vaccination program, to widen the vaccination priority list for frontline workers of the tourism industry to include tour guides, operators and other accredited workers and service providers.”
At present, tourism frontliners such as workers in the quarantine hotels and airports are already included in the A4 priority group. But there are more tourism frontliners that interact with tourists face to face.
“While we are grateful that Secretary Galvez has included those working in airports and quarantine hotels on the immunization Priority Group A4, we are hopeful that the other tourism frontliners will be prioritized as well,” she said.
“Not only will vaccination protect these workers from the Covid-19 virus as we prepare to welcome foreign and domestic tourists; it also serves as a firewall of sorts that will restrict the spread of the virus in our tourist destinations,” explained the DOT chief.
“The lifting of travel restrictions and the quick recovery of the tourism industry – and the national economy as a whole — hinge heavily on the health and safety of our tourism workers,” she added.
Manila hotel workers get jabs
Meanwhile, Romulo Puyat expressed appreciation for Manila Mayor Isko Moreno’s move to include hotel workers among those prioritized to receive vaccination.
“Our profound thanks must go to Mayor Isko for including hotel workers in their priority list for vaccination. It will help Manila regain its place as a major tourism destination, once the Philippines reopens to foreign travelers.”
The vaccination of hotel workers from DOT-accredited establishments was done on March 23, and conducted in several public hospitals such as Santa Ana Hospital and Ospital ng Maynila. However, industry sources disclosed that the vaccine allocation for hotel workers soon ran out, and hotels have yet to receive a notice of another round of vaccination.
“Most of the hotels in Manila were done with their first shot — such as Bayview Park Hotel, Ramada by Wyndham, Winford Manila and Resort, Diamond Hotel, Bayleaf, etc.,” said Hotel Sales and Marketing Association President Christine U. Ibarreta.
She added, “We were told that all hotel employees are eligible to be vaccinated, but we just don’t have the numbers right now how many actually received their jabs last week.”
Domagoso’s people, however, failed to respond to this paper’s repeated inquiries regarding Manila’s vaccination program for hotel workers.
The tourism industry accounts for 12.7 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, according to official government data. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, foreign tourist arrivals in the Philippines plunged by some 84 percent to 1.32 million in 2020, from the historic high of 8.26 million in 2019.