MANILA, 14 July 2023: Philippines’ Department of Tourism (DOT) will continue to use the “Love the Philippines” slogan to inspire foreign and local tourists to travel around the country despite the recent termination of its contract with the advertising agency that created the campaign.
The enhanced Love the Philippines campaign launched on 27 June and abruptly pulled on 3 July.
Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco voiced her commitment earlier this week to the campaign’s message and collateral a week after the tourism campaign video was scrapped and the contract cancelled with the creative agency pending a full investigation.
The Philippines News Agency reported that the DOT had announced Monday it would terminate its contract with DDB Philippines after it was discovered that the agency used stock footage shots sourced from foreign destinations in the new tourism campaign video.
The advertising firm last Sunday publicly apologised, saying it was taking full responsibility for the non-original materials used in the now-deleted video.
Citing initial meetings before the launch, the DOT said DDB, the agency responsible for the campaign, had repeatedly assured them “that the originality and ownership of all materials are in order.”
Supporters of the Secretary of Tourism praised her for deciding to terminate the department’s contract with the advertising agency pending investigation, saying it “demonstrates a steadfast commitment to uphold excellence in the DOT.
Half-year tourism performance
Halfway through 2023, the DOT has recorded 2.67 million international visitor arrivals as of 29 June 2023, which stood at 2.44 million, suggesting the annual target of 4.8 million international tourist arrivals by yearend is achievable.
South Koreans remain the top source of foreign visitors logging 665,757 trips to the Philippines, followed by the US(509,526), Australia (128,232), Japan (127,139), and Canada (123,439). In 2022, the industry contributed 6.2% to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), generating PHP1.87 trillion in tourism revenue.
