TACLOBAN CITY– A tourist who checks into a hotel, eats at a local restaurant, hires a boat, visits a heritage site, buys a souvenir, or spends a day exploring a community also leaves behind valuable information, data that can help shape the future of tourism destinations.
This October, the 37th National Statistics Month (NSM) puts tourism statistics in the spotlight, carrying the theme “Tuklas Pilipinas: Statistics as Beacon Towards Inclusive, Resilient, and Sustainable Tourism.”
Philippine Statistics Authority in Eastern Visayas (PSA-8) Regional Director Wilma Perante, says the theme highlights how statistics provide evidence and direction for tourism development, from understanding visitor demand and expenditures to measuring the sector’s economic contribution and supporting sustainable destinations.
“Number can tell stories of development in tours. Tourism statistics can help communities understand whether tourism growth is translating into opportunities for local businesses, workers and residents,” Perante said.
The PSA’s Household Survey on Domestic Visitors, for instance, gathers information on travel characteristics, destinations, transportation, package tours and future travel plans. The data serve as inputs in formulating policies and development plans for domestic tourism, as well as in monitoring the National Tourism Development Plan.
Having reliable and timely information in the local government can mean the difference between planning based on assumptions and planning based on evidence.
Meanwhile, Department of Tourism-8 Senior Tourism Office Claire Pumanes said tourism planning involves much more than promoting a destination.
“Statistics help provide the evidence needed to identify needs such as accommodation facilities, transportation services, waste-management systems, public toilets, safety measures and visitor information services. Or the need for investments in heritage conservation or skills development among tourism workers,” Pumanes said.
The PSA and Department of Tourism (DOT) are also working together to measure tourism’s contribution to the Philippine economy through the Philippine Tourism Satellite Account (PTSA). In 2025, tourism’s direct gross value added reached P2.27 trillion, equivalent to 8.1 percent of the country’s GDP. Tourism industries also accounted for an estimated 7.70 million jobs, or 15.7 percent of total employment.
However, beyond the banners, the celebration is an opportunity to strengthen the culture of using statistics in everyday decision-making according to Department of Planning, Economy and Development (DEPDev-8) Regional Director Meylene Rosales.
She said, tourism planners can ask, not only on how many tourists are coming, but also who they are, where they go, what they spend, how long they stay, what they experience and how tourism affects the communities they visit.
“The answers to these can help local governments design tourism programs based on actual conditions rather than assumptions,” Rosales said.
(AHLETTE C. REYES, PIA-Leyte)
