Why UNWTO chose PH for tourism conference

The United Nations World Tourism Organization decided to hold next week's conference on climate change and tourism in the Philippines, following last year's disasters. Taleb Rifai, head of the UNWTO, said they chose Legazpi City in Albay, an area often hit by typhoons. He said the conference aims to talk about how tourism can hurt or protect the environment. "One billion people traveling around the world internationally is a power. If one billion people decide they do not want to change the sheets, towels every day in the hotel, that's tremendous," he told ANC. "The aftermath of the tsunami is a good example in Thailand, Indonesia... All these countries were able to recover in a remarkably short period of time. Challenges like these are not only measured by how much you lose in terms of cost, human cost and infrastructure cost but also how much you learn," he added. Although tourist arrivals in the Philippines are picking up, Rifai says the Philippines' infrastructure has failed to keep up with the boom in tourism. Mornings@ANC, May 16, 2014