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Philippines Sees 200% Jump of Visa Applications from This Country

Philippines Sees 200% Jump of Visa Applications from This Country
A Chinese national holds a Chinese Passport © The Epoch Times

Chinese nationals applying for tourist and business-related visa at the Philippine embassy in Beijing have increased to 200 per cent.

The Philippine ambassador to China, Jose Santiago Sta. Romana, has attributed this rise to President's Duterte foreign policy announcement to align Philippines with China.

Sta. Romana said that travel and tour companies in China have increased their booking travels to the Philippines as there seems to be a growing demand in the China-Philippines travel market.

For years, Chinese tourists have avoided going to the Philippines but better ties between the two countries have resulted in a 200 percent rise in the number of Chinese seeking visas to visit the Philippines, according to Manila’s envoy to Beijing. Image: AFP
For years, Chinese tourists have avoided going to the Philippines but better ties between the two countries have resulted in a 200 percent rise in the number of Chinese seeking visas to visit the Philippines, according to Manila’s envoy to Beijing. Image: AFP

 

The Philippine government aims to double tourism arrivals this year and the problem right now is how to make it easier for the Chinese to process their visa to travel," Sta. Romana was quoted saying by The Philippine Star.

“We were out of the mainstream. The Chinese were touring Southeast Asia but not the Philippines during the period of our strained relations because the Chinese media coverage of the Philippines them was quite negative. Recently, the coverage of the Chinese media has been quite positive,” he said.

“(We) will hit one million  (arrivals) this year, so we are just scratching the surface,” the ambassador said, noting that various consulates in China are now deluged with visa applications.

The increase in the number of applications also resulted in more workers hired for its consular sections.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands after a signing ceremony held in Beijing, China October 20, 2016. Image: Reuters
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (L) and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands after a signing ceremony held in Beijing, China October 20, 2016. Image: Reuters

 

From January to December 2016, around 675,663 visited the Philippines, which 37.65% higher than the previous years. Moreover, for January to February this year, a 25.42 percent increase was noted in the tourist arrivals record compared to the same period in 2016.

Early this week, a group of Filipino foreign policy experts flew to China to discuss with their counterparts how to collaborate and eventually create a bilateral body that will co-manage the South China Sea.


Source : Phil Star Global | International Business Times | Inquirer

Indah Gilang Pusparani

Indah is a researcher at Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan Penelitian dan Pengembangan Daerah Kota Cirebon (Regional Development Planning and Research Agency of Cirebon Municipality). She covers More international relations, tourism, and startups in Southeast Asia region and beyond. Indah graduated from MSc Development Administration and Planning from University College London, United Kingdom in 2015. She finished bachelor degree from International Relations from University of Indonesia in 2014, with two exchange programs in Political Science at National University of Singapore and New Media in Journalism at Ball State University, USA. She was awarded Diplomacy Award at Harvard World Model United Nations and named as Indonesian Gifted Researcher by Australian National University. She is Researcher at Regional Planning Board in Cirebon, West Java. She previously worked as Editor in Bening Communication, the Commonwealth Parliament Association UK, and diplomacy consulting firm Best Delegate LLC in USA. Less
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