JORDAN, Guimaras – The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic forced tourism-related businesses in Guimaras to shut down or retrench employees, displacing over 5,000 Guimarasnon workers in such sector.
The displaced workers included tour guides, souvenir makers, staff of pasalubong centers, inns, hotels, resorts and restaurants, according to Liberty Ferrer, officer-in-charge of the Provincial Tourism Office (PTO).
The provincial government thought of ways to help them, she said. It hired some of them as staff of quarantine facilities.
“Ang aton tour guides nagbuhat sang online promotional activities katulad sang virtual tour. Ang iban nga accommodation establishments ginhimu temporary nga ilistaran sang aton medical frontliners so that these businesses could continue operating and keep their staff,” said Ferrer.
The Department of Tourism Region 6, on the other hand, offered online trainings for alternative livelihoods.
PTO data showed 38,216 tourists entering Guimaras in the fourth quarter of 2020 (October, November, December). They included bicycle and motorcycle enthusiasts and those interested to visit the island’s beaches and inland resorts.
With the gradual easing of quarantine restrictions on people’s movements, Ferrer is hopeful that Guimaras’ tourism industry would enjoy a rebound.
On October 2020 Guimaras started welcoming back people from around Western Visayas after seven months of barring non-Guimaras residents.
But the provincial government made it clear: “Visitors should not have signs and symptoms of COVID-19, not a probable or suspect case, and not a close contact of a confirmed COVID-19 case.”
Visitors must also fill out health declaration cards for future contact tracing if necessary.
As of Sunday, Feb. 14, Guimaras COVID-19 cumulative cases hit 265, with one active case left after 260 have recovered and four have died./PN
