With the sector hit hard by Covid-19, the Department of Tourism (DOT) has launched an online training program for the country’s tourism stakeholders to stay relevant and learn to cope with the difficulties arising from the global pandemic and to facilitate transition to recovery.
DOT secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said the program, dubbed DOT Online Training, is done via Zoom video-conferencing and offers the stakeholders an option to use their time productively during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ).
“The DOT is developing online courses for tourism stakeholders. This was conceptualized as an alternative to the regular training programs being conducted by the Office of Industry Manpower Development. This is our vision in embracing a new normal for our industry,” Puyat said in a statement.
She said the online course covers two subject areas:
- Tourism Enterprise which involves monitoring, evaluating and learning from past and present situations to enable tourism stakeholders to prepare better for the future; and
- Filipino Brand of Service which applies the seven Filipino values or “7Ms” that characterize Filipino hospitality — May Likha, Makatao, Makakalikasan, Makabansa, Masayahin, May-Bayanihan and May-Pag-asa.
“We can turn the temporary inactivity during lockdown into an opportunity to enhance the quality of tourist services. We can objectively look back at our past and current performance and utilize the breathing space to plan how we can further upgrade our services in our respective areas in the industry with the values of Filipino hospitality,” Puyat said.
She asked tourism stakeholders to participate in the online training program, adding the DOT is set to develop additional modules on other topics. “The DOT will continue to develop other online courses to enhance skills, assist and encourage stakeholders to cope, transition and move towards recovery”.
