State-owned Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has committed to help the tourism industry recover from the adverse effects of coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
In a statement on Thursday, DBP President and Chief Executive Officer Emmanuel Herbosa said the lender was committed to the development and progress of the tourism industry, as its gains had proven to cut across all segments of the social strata.
With this, he said the DBP was working closely with the Department of Tourism and tourism enterprises in formulating long-term solutions and interventions to help the industry rebound from the impact of the pandemic.
According to him, the bank is ready to provide the resources needed to enable industry players to implement mechanisms that would rebuild trust in travel, seamlessly adapt to digital platforms, and innovate traditional offerings to spur demand.
The “DBP has had a long history of collaboration with the tourism industry,” Herbosa said. “We shall remain a steadfast partner in finding meaningful solutions to revive, revitalize and reinvent the tourism sector.”
The lender said the tourism sector was an integral component of its loan portfolio. As of the first half of the year, the DBP disbursed more than P11.98 billion in credit assistance to the industry, which has benefited 178 tourism-related firms nationwide.
The DBP’s assistance for the tourism sector is lodged under two programs: the Retail Lending for Micro and Small Enterprises, which targets firms with an asset size of P15-million; and the Medium Enterprises and Other Business Enterprise Lending, which caters to businesses with assets of up to P100 million.
Herbosa said distressed businesses might also avail themselves of credit support under his bank’s Rehabilitation Support Program on Severe Events, which could extend financing support for the rehabilitation efforts of both public and private institutions adversely affected by calamities.
“Moving forward, we must ensure that resources for the industry are channeled not just for recovery and rebuilding but also for enhancing the readiness and resiliency to combat sudden and debilitating fluxes in the economy,” the DBP chief said.
DBP is the seventh largest bank in the country in terms of assets and provides credit support to four strategic sectors of the economy — infrastructure and logistics; micro, small and medium enterprises; social services and community development; and the environment.
Its total loan portfolio in the first nine months of the year hit P364.4 billion, 15.6 percent higher than the P315.13 billion a year ago.
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