MANILA: The Philippines has recorded significant growth in tourists from the Middle East, the Department of Tourism said on Sunday, following various campaigns to attract more travelers from the region.

Tourism is a key sector for the Philippines, and its government has lately been trying to attract more visitors from the Middle East by creating Muslim-friendly destinations and ensuring that they have access to halal products and services. 

Those efforts, part of the Philippines’ move to diversify its economy away from dependency in the declining Chinese market, have led to a surge in international tourism arrivals from countries in the Middle East and the Gulf Cooperation Council, Philippine Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco said. 

“We are targeting markets such as the Middle East and the GCC, as well as India,” she said in a statement. 

“Because of our efforts to diversify, we are seeing, for example, from the Middle East and the GCC, an average of no less than 500 to 800 percent growth rate in terms of international tourism arrivals.”

The Philippines’ tourism sector has been recovering since the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced most tourism destinations in the country to shut down and resulted in a decline of foreign arrivals by more than 80 percent compared to 2019 numbers.

As tourism started to rebound, the Middle Eastern market was among the ones showing “promising signs of recovery” last year, a Department of Tourism report said. 

The UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Bahrain are among the countries showing a positive recovery rate, “signifying a steady return of visitors from the Gulf region,” according to the report. 

In 2024, the Philippines was recognized as an Emerging Muslim-friendly non-Organization of Islamic Cooperation Destination by the Mastercard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index.

The index is an annual report benchmarking destinations in the Muslim travel market. 

The archipelagic country known for its white-sand beaches, diving spots and rich culture, also won the award in 2023 and has since boosted efforts to attract visitors from the Middle East.

Last year, it launched a beach for Muslim women travelers in Boracay, the country’s top resort island and one of the world’s most popular. 

The Department of Tourism also partnered with Emirates Airlines in April to jointly promote the Philippines, targeting the Middle Eastern, Mediterranean and European markets. 

“The beauty of coming to the Philippines is that it is a very diversified destination. We are able to cater to any type of traveler, whether you are a solo traveler, a couple, (or) a family,” Frasco said. 

“With the number of islands that we have and the readiness of these destinations, then we are excited to welcome people of all nationalities.”

MOGADISHU: At least 10 people were killed on Sunday after a suicide bomber targeted a queue of young recruits registering at the Damanyo military base in the Somali capital Mogadishu, witnesses told Reuters.
Teenagers were lining up at the base’s gate when the attacker detonated their explosives, they said.
A military captain who gave his name as Suleiman described the attack as he had seen it unfold.
“I was on the other side of the road. A speeding tuk-tuk stopped, a man alighted, ran into the queue, and then blew himself up. I saw 10 people dead, including recruits and passers-by. The death toll may rise,” he said.
Dozens of abandoned shoes and the remains of the suicide bomber were visible at the scene.
Another witness, Abdisalan Mohamed, said he had seen “hundreds of teenagers at the gate as we passed by in a bus.”
“Abruptly, a deafening blast occurred, and the area was covered by dense smoke. We could not see the details of casualties,” he said.
Medical staff at the military hospital told Reuters they had received 30 injured people from the blast and that six of them had died immediately.
Government forces quickly cordoned off the entire area.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack and government officials could not immediately be reached for comment.
The attack echoed a similar incident in 2023 when a suicide bomber killed 25 soldiers at the Jale Siyad base, located opposite the Damanyo facility.
Sunday’s attack followed the assassination on Saturday of Col. Abdirahmaan Hujaale, commander of battalion 26, in the Hiiran region, amid local reports of Al-Shabab militant infiltration into government and security forces.