Abdiel Franz Bernales

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed his intent on July 14 to further “open” the country to the international community to boost tourism by upgrading and constructing airports nationwide, which, in turn, would help drive economic growth.

Photos Courtesy of Facebook/Bongbong Marcos/Philippine Information Agency.

Marcos remarked during the groundbreaking ceremony of the Caticlan Passenger Terminal Building in Nabas, Aklan, the main gate to Boracay.

“The influx of people, of travelers, is going to be a big boost to the local economy and, I might add, the national economy,” he said.

Marcos said the idea is to open up the country, not only through Manila, but also through international flights coming from Europe and other Southeast Asian countries.

''We are doing the same things for many regional airports. We have been talking about Iloilo. We have made agreements in Bohol, in Siargao, and there will be others more. Ngayon ay pinag-uusapan pa lang. So, I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag because they are still in discussions,'' Marcos added. 

According to Marcos, the development of the PTB demonstrates that the government is “putting together the building blocks” of its policy to “open up the country to international travelers without having to go through the Manila airport.”

“Tourism right now contributes close to 8 percent to our GDP (Gross Domestic Product), and that is something that we want to increase, and that is why these projects that we have are also very important,” he added.

Marcos said the administration wants to bring the Philippines to the top of minds of the rest of the world, that this is a place where people can invest and have their vacation.

The two-story Caticlan PTB—targeted for completion in 2027—is designed to have a total floor area of 36,470 square meters, featuring six passenger boarding bridges and 36 individual check-in counters.

It is projected to handle up to seven million passengers annually, with a simultaneous capacity of 3,000 passengers at any given time.

Megawide Construction Corporation (MCC) secured the contract in 2024 to design and build the new Caticlan PTB.

By these measures, the Philippines is seen to join the ranks of high-income countries in the next 25 years, provided it sustains an economic growth rate of about 7 percent yearly, backed by reforms that would increase investments and job generation, according to the World Bank.