Presidential Adviser for Entrepreneurship and Go Negosyo founder Jose Maria Concepcion 3rd has reiterated the need to reopen the economy more amid the country’s ongoing battle against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
“We just have to open it (the economy) more and more. Now, if we cannot open the economy more and more, then we have to suffer the consequence,” he said during the webinar, titled “Flattening the Unemployment Curve” by Viventis Search Asia, in partnership with the People Management Association of the Philippines.
The objective, he pointed out, was to transition from general community quarantine (GCQ) to modified GCQ (MGCQ) and eventually open the economy.
“But we have to calibrate as we open,” Concepcion said. “If we see the infection moving up, then we pull back a bit. That’s the only way.”
Since the pandemic, which first emerged in the city of Wuhan in China’s central Hubei province last December, he said unemployment rose to an all-time high of 17.7% in April, leaving 7.3mn Filipinos jobless.
The Department of Labour and Employment estimated that as many as 10mn Filipino workers could lose their jobs this year as a result of the pandemic, up from an initial estimate of 4-5mn.
Amid the public health crisis, the country has seen new opportunities, with Concepcion saying online resellers are growing fast. “The housewives now cooking their foods, selling it out online to Viber communities and Facebook — that is growing in huge numbers.”
He appealed to the government to enable online entrepreneurs to continue and then impose stricter measures later on.
‘TOURISM SECTOR SHOULD OPEN’
Concepcion said the government should also focus its efforts on revitalising the tourism sector, one of the industries severely hit by the Covid-19.
The government, he added, would have to lend a hand to airline owners as part of efforts for recovery of the tourism sector. “I think it’s about time that we start to open the tourism sector gradually,” Concepcion said. “In areas (where) the infection is very low, then I think we should open up.”
“Of course, in the areas like Cebu, it will be pretty dangerous to go there right now with the infection moving up,” he noted.
On Tuesday, Boracay Island opened its doors to visitors, but exclusively for residents from the Western Visayas. According to Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat, Bohol and El Nido, Palawan are the next tourist spots to be opened to local travellers.
In a phone interview with Manila Times, Puyat said they were looking at opening Bohol in July, though the agency has to co-ordinate with the local government. “I’m already talking to Gov. (Arthur) Yap of Bohol because they practically have no Covid-19 cases, probably only three, but it’s coming from returning residents,” she added.
In the case of El Nido, Puyat said she would probably be flying to El Nido next week to check its protocols. The Tourism chief reported that Baguio City wants Covid-19 protocols in place before it starts accepting tourists.
“I’ve already also talked to Mayor Benjamin Magalong. They’ve been under modified GCQ since June 1, but he’s comfortable in opening Baguio I think this September, because he wants protocols to be already in place,” she said.
Travel for tourism purposes may be allowed only between places under MGCQ, and subject to travel restrictions imposed by local government units (LGUs).
“As long as it is placed under modified GCQ, we’re already talking to the LGUs. We’re already talking about what protocols can be placed so that when people go there, it’s safe,” Puyat explained.
While some cities and municipalities are gearing up for the reopening of their respective tourism sectors, she recognised some local governments are hesitant to welcome tourists since they want protocols at least to be institutionalised.
This photo shows a policeman standing guard along the empty famous white beach of Boracay Island in central Philippines, as community quarantine against Covid-19 still continues, with foreign tourists still banned on beaches.
