Department of Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez said yesterday reducing the period for quarantine for travelers will also encourage more foreign direct investments (FDIs) in the country.
During the Laging Handa briefing, Lopez said many foreign investors are discouraged visiting the country for their investment prospects due to the required 14-day quarantine upon arrival.
International travelers arriving in the Philippines are required to undergo 14 days of quarantine, 10 of which should be spent at an accredited hotel or quarantine facility, while the remaining four days can be completed at home under the monitoring of the respective local government unit.
Foreign travelers are also required to take the reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test on the seventh day of quarantine.
“They (investors) are really discouraged in a way that it is affecting our economic growth and recovery,” Lopez said in mixed English and Filipino.
The trade chief said DTI is batting for reducing the number of days for quarantine for travelers to help the travel sector in general.
This proposal is currently being taken up at the technical level and will soon be presented to the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases, Lopez said.
Aside from attracting foreign investors to visit the country, shortening the quarantine period will also free up occupancy rate of facilities.
It will also lessen the cost for individuals visiting the country, he added.*PNA
