DOT chief pitches PH as an investment destination to ASEAN business leaders

“We invite you to invest in a future where tourism becomes a stronger engine of growth.”

This is what Department of Tourism (DOT) Secretary Dita Angara-Mathay said on Wednesday (July 22) to foreign investors present at the Bureau of Treasury’s Ayuntamiento de Manila’s Marble Hall, a newly converted Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions (MICE) space in the historic Walled City of Intramuros.

Organized by Ikhlas Capital, a private equity fund operating within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the annual exclusive gathering convenes business leaders, policymakers, and investors to discuss regional growth strategies, sustainability, and cross-border collaborations. One of the founding partners is former Finance Secretary Cesar Purisima, and it is chaired by former CIMB Group CEO Nazir Razak.

“Before I became Secretary of Tourism three months ago, I spent more than three decades at the Department of Trade and Industry working on trade, investment, policy, and industry development. Collectively, these shaped how I see my portfolio at the DOT– tourism is simply not just a sector to be promoted through marketing and branding but as an investment platform that encompasses; a platform that brings together infrastructure, connectivity, finance, technology, and the private sector to create the conditions for sustainable growth,” Secretary Angara-Mathay said.

Highlighting the country’s wealth of natural assets, vibrant culture and heritage, she discussed how the Department under her helm intends to make the destinations “more investable”.

“When airports are connected to reliable roads, ports, utilities, digital infrastructure, and tourism projects, the impact goes far beyond the airport itself. We want to create: not isolated tourism projects, but connected, investment-ready destinations,” she added.

A more conducive PH investment climate

According to Secretary Angara-Mathay, the DOT is pursuing a whole-of-economy approach that integrates both physical and digital infrastructure, with a strong partnership from the private and public sectors to unlock the country’s tourism potential.

One of her immediate priorities is to transform the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), the infrastructure arm of the DOT, into a stronger investment promotion and facilitation institution.

“We want TIEZA to become to tourism what PEZA and the BOI have become to industry: a trusted investment promotion and facilitation partner that helps bring projects from concept to reality,” she emphasized, saying that the DOT is organizing a high-level working group to strengthen and redirect TIEZA’s operations.

At present, the country has five flagship Tourism Enterprise Zones (TEZs), master-planned, government-designated geographic areas that offer historical, cultural, or natural significance, regulated to become an integrated leisure complex, with dedicated infrastructure to attract visitors and stimulate socio-economic tourism. These included the long unbroken beaches of San Vicente, Palawan; Mt. Samat in Bataan; Panglao Island Bay in Bohol; Corregidor Island in Cavite; and Rizal Park Complex in Manila.

The Tourism Chief also pitched for the expansion of the hospitality industry and to develop the next generation of Philippine tourism assets, including branded luxury and upscale hotels, integrated tourism developments, wellness and longevity destinations, convention and exhibition facilities, sustainable resorts, and tourism enterprise zones that can anchor regional growth.

In terms of capturing larger foreign markets, especially for cruise tourism, the Secretary shared that the goal of the DOT is to make cruise passengers “stay longer, spend more, and experience more of the country.”

The DOT has likewise made its goal clear under its newly launched nationwide tourism and economic activation “Discover More To Love” under its banner Love The Philippines branding. That is to increase the country’s value not in visitor arrivals alone, but through the expansion of higher-value segments such as MICE, education, wellness and longevity, retirement, sports tourism, Halal, and farm and eco-tourism, as well as to continuously push for a more digitalized and seamless travel experience in the Philippines.

“As the Philippines navigates its future together with ASEAN, we look forward to navigating that journey with you—not only as investors, but as partners in building a stronger Philippines and a more connected region,” the Secretary concluded.

Meanwhile, Filipino world-class talent El Gamma Penumbra, known for their shadow-play, also entertained guests with their breakthtaking performance highlighting the creativity and innovation of the Filipino people. Their presentation underscored the DOT’s continued efforts to showcasing exceptional Filipino talent as part of its initiative to elevate meaningful visitor experiences. The performance, featured the iconic “Piliin Mo Ang Pilipinas”, which invited foreign investors to discover the Philippines as a dynamic investment-worthy capital for tourism bearing.

Other Cabinet Secretaries present during the event were Department of Finance Secretary Frederick Go and Department of Information and Communications Technology Secretary Henry Rhoel Aguda.