Davao City won second place for Mindanao in the recently concluded Tourism Champions Challenge (TCC) with the winning project, Panunod: A Way of Life, Inherited Preservation of the Unwavering Legacy of Cultural and Sustainable Tourism of the Davao City Kadayawan Village.
The Panunod project intends to build a cultural peace hub at Davao City’s Ramon Magsaysay Park for the 11 ethnolinguistic groups of the city. It aims to establish a centralized cultural center and sustainable communities dedicated to showcasing economic opportunities for the arts and products of Davao City’s 11 ethnolinguistic groups.
Jennifer Romero, Officer-in-Charge of the Davao City Tourism Operations Office (CTOO), said in an interview with the Madayaw Program over the City-owned Davao City Disaster Radio (DCDR) on Tuesday that they submitted the Panunod project, not only to showcase the city’s Kadayawan Village but also to ensure the sustainability and preservation of the cultures of the 11 ethnolinguistic groups in Davao.
“Because that is already the way of life sa atoang 11 tribes na kailangan nato ipreserve, kailangan siya maging sustainable, and i-enhance pa nato all the more para the future generation will know and will benefit out of our Kadayawan village [Because that is already the way of life of our 11 ethnolinguistic groups that we have to preserve, ensure its sustainability, and enhance the project so that the Kadayawan Village will continue to educate and pass on its cultures to the next generation],” she said.
Romero also said that they presented plans for the Kadayawan Village during the workshop and final judging of the TCC. Their plans included the establishment of an administration hall, tourist hall, and other tourism-friendly infrastructure that would attract more tourists to visit the village.
Through this, the expected influx of tourists will also aid in sustaining the livelihood of the 11 ethnolinguistic groups in the village through the Pasalubong or Souvenir shops that they have planned to further enhance.
By winning in the TCC, the project will receive a total of Php 20,000,000 grant from the Department of Tourism (DoT) through the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), which will serve as a fund source to jumpstart the initiative.
The TCC is a competition spearheaded by the Department of Tourism to empower local government units to conceptualize and develop projects that will create new tourism opportunities, create accessibility, and showcase unique Filipino heritage.
Out of almost 100 entries from different local government units in the country, 15 winning proposals from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao were awarded in a ceremony held on April 15 at the Philippine International Convention Center.
Meanwhile, Romero added that following the win of the city, they are expecting to commence the project after they receive the guidelines and the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement. The project is expected to be inaugurated late this year or early next year. CIO
