Teo leads sales blitz in Japan

Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo is leading a business mission to Japan to boost efforts by the Philippine government and private sector to invite more Japanese visitors and tourism investors.

The June 26 to 29 Philippine Business Mission (PBM) aims to increase the country’s share of Japan’s burgeoning outbound market by providing a platform for suppliers of Philippine tourism products, mainly through business-to-business meetings.

Japan remains to be the country’s fourth largest source of foreign visitors, with 211,123 Japanese coming to the Philippines from January to April this year — 15 percent more than in the same period last year.

Initiated by the Department of Tourism and the Tourism Promotions Board, the PBM delegation includes 70 representatives from government agencies and private companies — four travel and tour companies, 34 hotel and resort properties and two airlines.

Teo said in a statement the PBM was “an important exercise to sustain interest of our counterparts in growing the business both ways.”

The private sector’s “show of force [was] very heart-warming and truly telling of their full support to government,” she said.