Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat, along with Testing Czar and National Action Plan Against COVID-19 Deputy Chief Secretary Vince Dizon, and Provincial Governor of Palawan, Gov. Jose “Pepito” Alvarez, led the ceremonial vaccination of El Nido tourism frontliners and workers at the Lio Estate last August 3. This marked a momentous occasion in the DOT’s pandemic recovery program as this rolls out in 4 key tourist destinations of Palawan – El Nido, Coron, San Vicente, and Puerto Princesa, where accredited establishments have been accommodating essential bookings and local tourists. The DOT targets to inoculate over 30,000 tourism workers in these tourist hubs.
In line with the DOT’s mass vaccination program in Lio Estate, Ten Knots kicked off its own vaccination program where 600 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines purchased through the Ayala Vaccination and Immunization Program (AVIP) arrived at the Lio Airport, via AirSWIFT; these were used for employees as well as for the El Nido community.
Getting resort-based staff vaccinated would not have been possible if not for a multi-stakeholder approach, with AirSWIFT transporting the vaccines and medical team; AC Health and QualiMed administering the vaccines, together with the Ten Knots doctors, and Lio Resorts providing the accommodations for the team.
“The safety of our guests, employees, and the local community remain our top priority. Getting local tourism frontliners and workers vaccinated will not just provide protection for themselves and their families, but also greatly help in our bid to restore jobs and restart tourism slowly, carefully, and safely”, says Javier D. Hernandez, Ten Knots Development Corp. President & CEO.
Despite challenges in tourism, Palawan was cited as the “World’s Best Island” in 2020 by renowned publication, Travel + Leisure, and remains to be one of the top PH destinations to visit.
