JICA assists in dev’t of Bohol ecotourism

MANILA, Philippines — The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is helping build the capacity of ecotourism sites in Bohol through a technical assistance program.

Tourists continue to frequent Bohol despite the deadly earthquake that shook the island province in 2013 and security threats from insurgents. JICA noted that over a million tourists had visited Bohol last year from 602,577 a year ago.

Most of these tourists come from China, Korea and US,  JICA said.

JICA said there  is an opportunity to grow the Japanese market.

A JICA-assisted development cooperation program called Sustainable Environment Protection Project (SEPP) has already identified 102 ecotourism sites in Bohol that can be opened to foreign visitors. These include firefly and kayaking experience tours in Maribojoc.

The agency has dispatched travel industry professional Akiko Nagata under its volunteer program to share knowledge to local government units in Bohol value-added activities such as sales tools that can be incorporated in their tourism programs.

“Bohol has so much potential in sustainable tourism and the Boholanos have a unique kind of hospitality that can help boost tourism in the area, said Nagata, who previously worked in tourism promotions in Japan’s Gunma Prefecture in Northern Tokyo.

Accommodation and tourism site operators in Bohol also underwent disaster risk reduction and crisis management trainings.

Japan’s official development assistance (ODA) and technical assistance arm said there is a potential to significantly grow tourism arrivals in Bohol with the completion of the New Bohol airport next year.