PHILIPPINES: Senate Bill Seeks To Develop Tourism In Spratlys

Senator Juan Edgardo Angara wants Pag-asa island cluster in the municipality of Kalayaan, Palawan declared as an ecotourism destination and protected area under the National Integrated Protected Areas System (NIPAS).

In filing Senate Bill 2938, he said there is a need to promote a sustainable ecotourism industry to attract local and foreign tourists in a move to secure the country’s share in the world tourism market and to make it an avenue for generation of employment, while ensuring the environmental protection and preservation of the area.

“The bill seeks to declare the Pag-asa isaland and its adjoining islands of Parola, Kota and Panata, collectively referred to as the Pag-asa Island Cluster in the municipality of Kalayaan, in the province of Palawan, which sit well within the territory of the Republic of the Philippines (RP) as a special ecological tourism zone to promote and develop the area as a tourist destination for domestic and international tourists whole protecting the natural resources and diverse flora and fauna species,” Angara said.

The measure also declares the islands of Parola, Kota and Panata as protected area under the NIPAS, he added.

The Pag-asa island, located 480 kilometers off southwestern Palawan is the second largest island in the whole of Kalayaan Island Group (Spratlys) in the West Philippine Sea.

Angara said his measure is in response to Kalayaan Mayor Eugenio Bito-onon Jr.’s wish to turn the Pag-asa Island Cluster to a tourist destination and fisheries zone.