DOT-6 gears up for Boracay reopening

By Joseph B.A. Marzan

 

The Department of Tourism-Region 6 (DOT-6) said Friday that it is already ramping up preparations for the reopening of Boracay Island in Malay, Aklan to tourists from other areas of the country on Oct. 1, 2020.

DOT Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat announced on Sept. 22, that the Boracay Inter-Agency Task Force (BIATF) approved the request of Aklan Governor Florencio Miraflores to reopen the island to tourists.

Romulo-Puyat, the chairperson of the BIATF, said that the island would be open to tourists from areas under General Community Quarantine (GCQ) status or lower.

She added that tourists should show negative results for the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) via Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) testing.

Boracay Island was not spared from lockdowns, having been in different levels of CQ since March 19, 2020.

On Sept. 24, 2020, the national Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-MEID) provided the guidelines for the island’s reopening in its Resolution No. 74.

The salient points of the Resolution in relation to Boracay Island include the following:

– It may only accept tourists from areas with GCQ status or lower;

– Visitors shall undergo RT-PCR tests prior to travel, and must have negative results not earlier than 48 hours before travel;

– There will be no age limits, but restrictions on persons with comorbidities shall be strictly enforced;

– The Godofredo P. Ramos Airport in Brgy. Caticlan shall be the only port of entry for tourists travelling by air, with a central point to be established for tourists travelling via land, air, and sea; and

– Minimum health and safety guidelines as well as emergency response protocols must be in place, and a COVID-19 Laboratory must be operational in the locality.

In a message to Daily Guardian, DOT-6 Director Helen Catalbas said that they are ensuring the compliance of Tourism-Related Establishments (TRE) to minimum health standards.

As of Thursday, 201 TREs have been given a Certificate of Authority to Operate (CAO) from DOT-6, and 1 having been given a Provisional CAO.

DOT-6 data also showed that 4,461 beds in accommodation establishments (AE) are available for tourists.

Catalbas said they are also actively campaigning for accreditation of other TREs in the island.

“We ensure that AEs are compliant with the minimum public health standard thru actual physical inspections and issuance of [CAO]. We also continue to campaign for accreditation of other tourism enterprises in the island,” Catalbas said in a message.

Daily Guardian has also reached out to Malay Acting Mayor Frolibar Bautista but he has yet to respond as of this writing.