National Economic Development Authority regional director Efren Carreon sees bright prospects for Central Visayas economy./ Irene R. Sino Cruz
CEBU CITY, Philippines–The region’s economy will continue to post growth this year, according to Efren Carreon, Central Visayas director of the National Economic Development Authority (Neda).
Carreon cited the sectors of tourism and business process outsourcing (BPOs) as the major drivers of growth in the region in 2018.
Last year, the region’s tourist arrivals reached 8.099 million, exceeding set target of 7.4 million.
CEBU posted the highest share of tourists at 2.805 million foreign arrivals and 2.77 million domestic arrivals.
Carreon said that with the opening of Terminal 2 of the Mactan Cebu International Airport (MCIA) and the Panglao International Airport in Bohol province, more flight frequencies were opened last year.
Ten new international flights were inaugurated in 2018. Eight of these served Cebu and China while two others are from Muan in South Korea and Taipeh, Taiwan.
Carreon also noted the contribution of BPOs to the region’s economy. In Cebu alone, there are around 160,000 workers in the BPO sector, he pointed out.
On the other hand, the agriculture and export sectors did perform as well as the two sectors, Carreon said.
Tourism and BPOs will continue to grow this year, he added.
Carreon also expects that with the upcoming polls, election-related businesses and consumer spending is also expected to grow. /dcb