Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga – On January 26, The Department of Tourism (DOT) officially commenced the first day of the Philippine
Education Tourism Conference (PETC). The conference was a three-day event that tackled topics such as the past, present and future of English as Second Language (ESL) Courses in the country. This includes rising industries such as Voluntourism and Aviation as alternative modes of ESL education in the country. In the inspiring and insightful welcoming address of Hon. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat stated, DOT’s goal is “To make the Philippines the multi-faceted education tourism destination in the region.”
The first day of the event could be summed up by the word ‘demand’, as the topics during this day were focused on providing the data and statistics for ESL internationally. The discussion pertained to the Asian, European and USA markets, and what the Philippines have provided and could provide moving forward. Although, as Ms. Soleil Tropicales of DOT-San Francisco stated the Philippines must invest in marketing and promotion in order to compete with other [gap year] programs being offered in Asia.
The second day, however, could be summed up by the word ‘supply’, as the exhibitors and topics during this day consisted of experts from the Philippines who discussed the history of ESL, and other courses such as Culinary Arts, Voluntourism, and last but not the least Aviation, which could provide and cater to the demands of the markets mentioned the day before. AAG’s very own Region Director for the Asia Pacific, Mr. Christopher Magdangal was invited to speak on the topic “Philippines: Asia’s Center of Aviation Education”, highlighting Alpha Aviation Group’s competency to cater to the international demand, and what AAG has done for the Philippine aviation market in general through its world class training philosophy and support infrastructure.
For the final day of the PETC, a Business to Business (B2B) Virtual Networking was held for businesses and attendees who would like to inquire and know more about the exhibitors during the three-day conference.
The conference was attended by over 500 virtual participants, which consisted of both international and local participants, which were composed of students, organizations, and government agencies.