Day: March 21, 2022

NAGOYA – The Philippines invited travel partners in the Chubu region to help revitalize tourism flows to the Philippines with a “Meet and Greet” event for the travel industry in central Japan at the Hilton Hotel in Nagoya on 17 March 2022.

Organized by the Department of Tourism (DOT) with support from the PH Consulate General in Nagoya, Secretary of Tourism Bernadette Romulo-Puyat was joined in the event by Philippine Consul General to Nagoya Celeste Vinzon-Balatbat.

The event provided updates on the relaxation of Philippine border measures, compliance with the “new normal” health and safety standards for the industry, upgrading of the variety and the quality of tourism services, and ways forward on reviving travel and tourism between the Philippines and Japan.

Secretary Puyat unveiled the Philippines’ new tourism campaign “More Fun with You,” as part of the country’s initiatives to welcome more tourists from Japan.

Among the new tourism product offerings catering to travelers’ evolving preferences and priorities in the new normal include over 111 tourism circuits that cover food crawls, cultural and heritage tours, and adventure trails around the country.

Secretary Puyat urged travel partners to engage with DOT’s West Japan Office, which will be conducting a series of “discovery webinars” on these product offerings, bringing real time updates for the travel trade in the Japanese language, and conduct livestream virtual facility tours of Cebu and Bohol.

With the Philippines hosting the World Travel and Tourism Council Global Summit on 20-22 April 2022, Secretary Puyat said, “we invite you to come and join us as we Rediscover Travel, and open real dialogue to promote sustainable and inclusive growth in the sector, working with governments and international institutions to create and recover jobs, drive exports, and generate prosperity for the industry.”

She also thanked the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA) for its policy recommendations, which have contributed to the easing of border restrictions beginning November 2020.

Meanwhile, Consul General Vinzon-Balatbat offered assistance from the Philippine Consulate-General in Nagoya in processing entry visas and advising travelers on entry protocols and other information on travel to the Philippines.

Mr. Akihiko Naoe, President of the Japanese Association of Travel Agents (JATA) – Chubu Chapter, affirmed that “JATA continues to urge the Japanese government to relax the border restrictions for the Philippines.”

He cited the popularity of the Philippines as a destination among the Japanese who want to learn the English language and confirmed JATA’s support for resuming travel between the two countries.

Before the pandemic, Japan was the country’s 4th biggest tourism market with 682,788 visitors or 8.27% of total international tourism arrivals in 2019.

Source: Republic of Philippines Department Of Foreign Affairs

The Police have observed a resurgence of a particular scam variant that involves scammers listing fake property listings on websites and contacting victims through WhatsApp chats, pretending to be property agents. Thereafter, they would ask the victims for deposits to secure an appointment for viewing of the property. Since January 2022, at least 144 victims have fallen prey to such scams, with losses amounting to at least $190,000.

In these cases, the victims are typically led to a WhatsApp chat from unknown numbers with the “+65” prefix after clicking on a link on the advertisement. Using spoofed numbers to liaise with the victims, these scammers would use photos, names and licence numbers of legitimate property agents that can be found on rental websites to deceive victims into believing that they are legitimate property agents. Victims who were interested to view the property as advertised, would be asked to make refundable deposits to secure an appointment, and be provided with bank account numbers or phone numbers to transfer the money. Victims would only discover that they had been scammed after the scammers ceased contact with them.

The Police would like to advise members of the public to adopt the following precautionary measures:

Beware of unknown numbers with the “+65” prefix, especially if you are using WhatsApp chats;

Beware of property listings on alternative platforms. Verify the legitimacy of a listing by ensuring that the contact number matches the one on the Council for Estate Agencies (CEA)’s website, where details on agencies are listed;

Property agents are not authorised to handle cash transactions. Therefore, no payments should be made before a house viewing;

Do not transfer money to unknown persons.

If you have information related to such crimes, please call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. Please dial ‘999’ if you require urgent Police assistance.

For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam Hotline at 1800-722-6688. Anyone with information on such scams may call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. All information will be kept strictly confidential.

Source: Singapore Police Force

ABU DHABI — Philippine Ambassador to the UAE Hjayceelyn M. Quintana, welcomed and gave a tour of the Philippines’ Bangkota Pavilion to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of UAE and Ruler of Dubai, at the World Expo 2020 in Dubai on 18 March 2022.

This marks the highest level visit from the UAE Government at the Philippines Pavilion in the World Expo to date.

Ambassador Quintana extended a warm welcome to HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and top members of his cabinet during the visit. She said, “I thanked His Highness for the UAE’s wonderful support to the success and strong presence of the Philippines in the World Expo.”

The Dubai Media office tweeted this about the visit: “His Highness was taken on an immersive trip through the nation’s aquatic wonderlands, an imaginative coral village packed with artistic wonders which convey a powerful message about safeguarding marine life.”

The Philippines Pavilion received its one millionth visitor last week, another proof of the country’s strong presence throughout the five-month run of the Dubai Expo to date.

The message of “cultural sustainability” espoused by the Philippines Pavilion was very well-received by the Expo visitors. The Philippines also hosted a number of major activities that showcased Filipino culture, talent, and the government’s thrusts, thus creating a new appreciation of the Philippines and its people in the Expo’s global stage. Among these were the “Paskong Pinoy sa World Expo” on 03 December 2021, the Philippine National Day ceremony on 11 February 2022 capped by the Gala Night Performance “Daluyong ng Diwa”, and a host of activities at the Bangkóta showcasing the Philippines as the centre of world biodiversity, as a country pursuing space, artificial intelligence and advanced technology cooperation, as an exponent of cultural sustainability, and as an excellent destination for investment and tourism.

Source: Republic of Philippines Department Of Foreign Affairs