The Suyac Island Mangrove Eco-Park is one of the five community-based tourism groups in the Philippines that were recognized at the ASEAN Tourism Standards Awards in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, on Tuesday, January 21.
Suyac Island in Sagay City, Negros Occidental, is one of the two community-based organizations in Western Visayas recognized under the ASEAN Community-Based Tourism Category for their “commitment to sustainable tourism”, the Department of Tourism said.
Also recognized with Suyac were Malay Sailing Boat Owners’ Cooperative in Aklan, Pidlisan Village CBT in Sagada, Bila Tourism Village in Mountain Province, and Marang-Marang Women’s Association of Malamawi Island, Basilan, under the ASEAN Community-Based Tourism category, a press release from Sagay City said.
The award was received by Sagay City Vice Mayor Leo Rafael Cueva, in behalf of Mayor Narciso Javelosa Jr., with Councilor Arthur Christopher Marañon, City Supervising Tourism Operations Officer Helen Arguelles-Cutillar, and Suyac Island Eco-Tourist Attendants Association President Melanie Mermida.
Cueva, who first started the program on the island, said that this international recognition is a testament of decades-long initiatives of the city government that made Suyac a model for sustainable tourism not just in the province but also in the country.
The ASEAN Tourism Standards Awards aims to recognize outstanding contributions from ASEAN member states to sustainable, inclusive, and quality tourism development and is part of the major activities of the ASEAN Tourism Forum.*