Formulation of agri-tourism plan in city pushed
City officials are encouraging the development of agri-tourism in the city and urged the City tourism Office in coordination with the Cordillera office of the Department of Tourism (DOT-CAR) and other concerned government agencies and departments for the formulation of a Baguio City Agri-Tourism Plan that will serve as a basis in the crafting of related programs, projects and activities.
Under Resolution No. 068, series of 2022, local legislators stated that the DOT-CAR is mandated to develop environmentally sustainable and socially responsible tourism that promotes economic growth not only in rural areas but also in urban centers like in Baguio City which is one of the highly urbanized cities in the country.
The council added that Baguio city has been known as the Summer Capital of the Philippines, a tourist and convention destination, and registering not lower than 1 million visitors over the past several years because of its cool weather and scenic attractions that serve as a natural pull for foreign and domestic tourists.
Earlier, the council adopted Resolution No. 092, series of 2020, that declared 16 barangays in the city as barangays engaged in agriculture-based activities and had requested the City Planning and Development Office or the appropriate government agency to give advice on how the identified barangays be declared as agriculture barangays that paved the way for the active participation of the community to be engaged in agriculture-related programs with the local government and other government agencies like the Cordillera office of the Department of Agriculture (DA-CAR).
The body pointed out that agri-tourism is a purposive development of agriculture and tourism to provide amazing educational experience, whether it be a tour of a farm or urban garden, a festival or an agri-business class that draw more tourists into a productive, and enhancing tour because of the environmentally encouraging balance of agriculture and tourism.
Further, farmers and urban gardeners worldwide have turned their land into a destination and opened their facilities and creations to the public to teach, draw awareness and the like, and the same can be likewise be done in the city by engaging farmers and gardeners to come together and develop a tourist destination with the appropriate facilities and customer service.
According to the council, the city government has been actively in support of agriculture in communities to conceptualize, implement and monitor agriculture projects and programs in the barangays as well as the city supporting the survival gardens and the 4-H Club programs and initiatives geared towards advancing the state of agriculture in the highly urbanized city.
On the other hand, Resolution No. 002, series of 2021 of the Baguio Highly Urbanized City Agriculture and Fishery Council (HUCAFC)–City Veterinary and Agriculture Office urged the DA-CAR and the DOT-CAR to provide funding and technical support in the establishment and accreditation of community-led agri-tourism sites in the city through a memorandum of agreement that may be signed for the said purpose.
The council stipulated that the City Tourism Office has actively been promoting historical and cultural traditions in drawing tourists in the city, thus, agri-tourism will help in complementing such effort to further increase the interest of tourists in visiting the city. – Dexter A. See
