A barangay in Cebu was named as one of the World’s Best Tourism Villages by the United Nations World Tourism Organization.
Barangay Bojo in the town of Aloguinsan, a fourth class municipality, was among the 44 world’s Best Tourism Villages of 2021, the Department of Tourism said.
The barangay has emerged as a rising eco-tourism destination in recent years. The town has steadily become popular for sights such as a scenic 1.4-kilometer river—the site of its Bojo River Eco-Cultural Tour— as well as hills, underwater natural resources, mangroves, and birds, managed by the Bojo Aloguinsan Ecotourism Association (BAETAS).
“BAETAS provides an eco-cultural river tour with mangrove ecology, bird and wildlife lectures—the profit from which were shared among the local government, community fund, barangay fund as well as the wages and payment to its suppliers,” the DOT said.
The United Nations recognized 44 villages from 32 countries that stood out for their natural and cultural resources, “as well as for their innovative and transformative actions and commitment to tourism development in line with the sustainable development goals,” DOT added.
Meanwhile, tourism secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said that barangay Bojo’s win was “a testament to the Philippines’ commitment to sustainable tourism development from the national level down to the grassroots.”
“The wealth of our natural resources and unmatched hospitality remains our key strength as we strive for the reopening of the industry to international travelers anchored on the principle of safe and sustainable tourism,” Puyat added.
The United Nations launched the program to advance the role of tourism as a tool for rural development, and safeguard these rural villages’ landscapes and knowledge systems.
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