Tourism biggest contributor to national economy

The Philippine Statistics Authority said Tuesday that the tourism industry contributed the highest to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2023, at 8.6%, pointing to the sector's untapped potential.

In a report, the PSA said the share of Tourism Direct Gross Value Added (TDGVA) to the Philippine economy amounted to P2.09 trillion last year, higher by 47.9% compared with the P1.41 trillion TDGVA in 2022. This is the highest growth of tourism since the start of the data compilation in the year 2000.

The tourism industry's impact on employment is equally impressive. In 2023, it was estimated that the industry created 6.21 million jobs, a 6.4% increase from the previous year's 5.84 million. This translates to a significant share of 12.9% of the total employment in the country, as reported by the PSA.

The Tourism Satellite Account captures the following products: accommodation services, food and beverage serving activities, transport services, travel agencies and other reservation services, entertainment and recreation services, shopping, and miscellaneous services.

Among the forms of tourism expenditures, inbound tourism expenditure posted the highest annual growth of 87.7%, amounting to P697.46 billion in 2023.

The Tourism Satellite Account categorizes tourism expenditures into various types. Inbound tourism expenditure, which refers to spending by foreign visitors, saw the highest annual growth of 87.7%, amounting to P697.46 billion in 2023.

Domestic tourism expenditure, representing spending by local tourists, also saw a significant increase of 72.3%, from P1.55 trillion in 2022 to P2.67 trillion in 2023. Outbound tourism expenditure, or spending by local tourists abroad, grew by 10% , from P189.29 billion in 2022 to P208.25 billion in 2023.

The total internal tourism expenditure, which includes both inbound and domestic tourism expenditure, grew by 75.3% from P1.92 trillion in 2022 to P3.36 trillion in 2023.

The Philippine Tourism Satellite Account is compiled annually by the Philippine Statistics Authority.