BoholAnalysis

(The Dauis Renaissance Program is about converting the Dauis convent to a museum, souvenir and coffeeshop, and a function room, the construction of decks in the courtyard and the installation of lighting fixtures. It also involved the renovation of the convent roof, the construction and fit out of kitchen and bakery, and the acquisition of implements for dining or banquet services.) I was informed by a colleague of mine that Bea Zobel de Ayala commissioned a research to ascertain the impact of the things that she was doing in Bohol in the past few years. The assessment was conducted by my friends at Holy Name University and was implemented in two sites – Baclayon and Dauis. They said they were interviewing key people regarding the projects. Unfortunately, I am not a key person, so I did not have a chance to be interviewed. I just hoped it is not because I am against how the project was undertaken, lest I will really conclude that they are only interviewing those that have something g

It’s but normal that when you are somewhere else, you miss nothing but home. I (together with 3 others) was facilitating a workshop for DISOP Philippines yesterday in Tacloban City and I was appalled by the striking contrast between private service providers (e.g. hotels, transport companies, etc.) in Tacloban and Tagbilaran. We arrived in Tacloban via Ormoc on a cloudy Wednesday afternoon. We were billeted at the conference resort, VicMar Beach Resort at Baybay, San Jose, Tacloban City and the moment we arrived at the venue, we went to the restaurant right away to order food as we were hungry. The alfresco restaurant was located facing the beach, a stone throw across the reception desk. Three service ladies were watching TV when we got in. We sat down and they never minded us as if not a single soul arrived, though how noisy we were. It was only when I called them to ask if we could order food that they stopped their recreation time. (tsk, tsk, tsk). While waiting for the food, I went

Sometimes, people think make-believe stories are true because they are repetitively told. Okay, GMA was in Bohol sometime middle of this year because she laid (to rest?) the time capsule to signify the start of the airport construction at Panglao. Okay, she and her confreres said that the airport will be funded from the national budget because her government had loan savings equivalent to 2.2 billion, 1 billion of which will be used for the Panglao airport. Okay, Governor Aumentado boasted that the economic internal rate of return of the proposed Panglao airport is 23.6%, by far exceeding NEDA’s required 15%. But were they really serious? Since the time capsule ceremony, for whatever that was worth, nothing else moved in Panglao (thank heavens!), besides the desperate buying and selling of land, brought about by speculation and fear. Some sources said a bulldozer just paved a few meters of earth just so to make the impression that something was going on for GMA’s visit. Interestingly

I was with my family on a river cruise in the famous Loboc river when our boatman and tour guide Joseph made striking remarks and critical questions that every person thinking about development, whether in local, national, or international spheres, must ponder on. Joseph, to most of us in that brief boat ride, embodied every soul that is forcefully and unjustly included in the ‘development’ process, and even those that are, without choice, excluded from its supposed benefits. “I used to walk along this riverbank to be able to go to school. I come from a barangay near the ‘busay’ (the waterfalls) that we are about to see in a short while”., Joseph told us as we were cruising the river upstream in a motorized banca (boat). “I am the first person in our village that finished high school. Maybe it’s our poverty condition that prevented most of us to go to school, or just the plain difficulty of walking along this river especially during the rainy season.”, he continued. He mentioned that m

Airport talk, more particularly that of the one proposed at Panglao Island has been in discussion in government and NGO circles since early nineties. (On a personal note, I can still remember May Blanco, then with the Social Action Center of the Diocese of Tagbilaran, who did a research paper on the Panglao Island Tourism Estate and its potential effects). It has resurfaced time and again and is currently a major news item in Tagbilaran recently with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (PGMA) avowing to finish the project before her term ends. PGMA seemed to be very insistent with the airport project. On 29 December 2004, she created a project management office for the Panglao Airport Development Project (Memorandum Order No. 157). Roughly seven months after, she signed Memorandum Order No 178 that sought to establish the Panglao Tourism Special Infrastructure Program with the development of the airport a major function. Very recently, she announced a timeline for its completion. Governo

The benefits of tourism to the poor in terms of employment, livelihood opportunities, improvements in the local economy, has recently been highlighted in development practice (Ashley 2006). Specific country case studies have shown its effect in generating employment, in enhancing participation of women in the labour force, and in instigating developments in forward linkages (ODI 2007). In the Philippines, tourism is pushed as development strategy, not only to propel local growth but also to combat poverty (Turingan 2006). Eco-tourism is one of Bohol’s primary development strategy (PPDO 2003). Its competitive advantage is the presence of the famous Chocolate Hills, white pristine beaches in its islands, diving sites, and world-class cultural attractions (Relampagos 2002). Increased investments and promotional activities in the tourism sector have caused the dramatic rise in tourist arrival in the province since 2001.Starting 2001 tourist arrival in the province has significantly increas