DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, Nov. 17 (PIA) -- Dumaguete City has targeted to inoculate over 10,000 tourism workers including 2,500 tricycle drivers, their extras and families, against COVID-19 before the year ends.

City Tourism Officer Jacqueline Antonio said “even if the workers are not Dumaguete residents as long as they work in the city, they are part of the vaccination campaign.”

The tourism office earlier wrote all tourism establishments, hotels, and restaurants on the list of its employees to be enlisted for vaccination.

Mayor Felipe Antonio Remollo said those individuals outside Dumaguete but are connected in the tourism sector will be included in the vaccination, “because their regular work is in Dumaguete more often than not they can bring or transmit virus so they are protected as well.”

Initially, Dumaguete has targeted 96,000 population only but since more additional vaccines have arrived, the city now eyes 120,000 target residents to be inoculated.

Remollo said the more qualified individuals to be vaccinated, the better the city is prepared for the reopening under the new normal especially in the tourism sector. 

Dumaguete thrives on tourism, “we have a lot of tourism potentials and the rest of the province, especially our connection in the tourism sector," the mayor said.

In behalf of Department of Tourism (DOT) Sec. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, Officer in Charge-Assistant Secretary Woodrow “RR” Maquiling Jr.  said 50,000 doses of Pfizer vaccines have been allocated for tourism, cultural workers, and allied workers in Dumaguete City.

Dumaguete remains to be the top priority in terms of tourism because of Negros Oriental’s presence in the tourism map.

Maquiling said the vaccine supply will benefit all tourism workers and other related members of the informal economy as part of DOT’s goal to fully vaccinate them.

He said domestic tourism will always be the backbone of the industry as the DOT is pushing everyone to reboot and reopen the economy through domestic travel.

“The success of our vaccination rate program is highly crucial in the realization of all our plans and programs recovered,” the DOT official said.

As the province is now under Alert Level 2, the easing of restrictions is timely as the holiday season is fast approaching and the demand for leisure travel staycations and dine-ins are starting to peak.

 With this, the mayor hopes this will jumpstart the recovery of the industry. (JCT/PIA7 Negros Oriental)