Luxury Boating Industry in the Philippines
For many centuries the Philippines was occupied by western powers. The name of the country itself was derived from the name of King Philip II of Spain, who occupied the country in the 16th century. The Spanish occupation of the Philippines was luckily not a very bloody affair, mainly because the natives were peaceful people and did not really offer resistance. The Spanish ruled the Philippines for over 300 years. After that, Britain declared war on Spain and they used their army to occupy Philippines in 1762. The Spanish fought back, defeated the British troops and re-occupied the Philippines in 1764. In 1898 the American-Spanish war broke out in the Philippines and the US army defeated the Spanish. The Americans decided to stay in the Philippines in fear that Germany might attempt to occupy the country. American politicians also claimed that the locals were unable to govern themselves and needed to be “civilized”. In 1899 a war broke out between the Americans and native Filipinos who wanted their freedom. Over 200,000 people were killed by the war, disease and hunger. During WWII the Japanese took over the Philippines. After much violence and uncountable deaths, the Americans defeated the Japanese and granted independence to the country in July 1946.
In the years following independence, the Philippines faced problems such as poverty and corruption. The inequality caused by corruption in the government led to insurgency and dissent in the country. In the 1970s, the Philippines suffered under the martial law and regime dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos who continued to oppress the people and contributed to inequality. In 1986 a new president Corazon Aquino was elected democratically after the public took to the streets and overthrew the government. Unfortunately, there were many natural disasters and political power struggles over the next few years that did not do the country any good.
In 1992 a new president Fidel Ramos was elected. Ramos concentrated on improving the infrastructure of the country. The improved energy supply and privatization of industry was the start of significant economic growth in the country. Unfortunately the Philippines and its people remained victim to corruption and political power struggles, resulting in widespread poverty.
The Philippines’ stock market, which opened in 1925, has been growing steadily since the 1990s, with the exception of the major economic crises of 1997 and more recently, 2008. The globalization of the economy of Philippines is still in its early stages, but the country is experiencing rapid growth in its business sector and urban development. It is one of the countries in Asia that is just starting to reach its full potential.
The Philippines has a higher literacy rate than its neighbors Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam. A large number of people in the Philippines also speak English, and this makes communication and international business in the country much easier than in many other Asian countries. The Philippines is one of the world leaders in outsourcing business and surpassed India in 2008 in the call center sector. This has largely increased employment and the size of the young middle class in the Philippines. People in the Philippines are well educated and the majority of the urban population speak English very well. This has made it easy for the Philippines to become one of the largest outsourced business centers in the world.
Boating is a necessity in the Philippines. There are over 7000 islands in the country making it necessary for people to get around using boats. There are many local boat builders in the Philippines who build small sailing and motor boats. Many people build their own wooden boats for commuting and transporting goods. With so many islands and many deep sea ports, the Philippines is an ideal place for ship building and repair. The Philippines is the fourth largest ship building nation in the world. It is easy to find skilled labor in the boating sector in the Philippines, and many Filipinos are employed in the boating industry throughout the world.
The leisure boating industry in the Philippines is not well developed, despite the country’s wonderful geographical location. The first yacht club, the Manila Yacht Club, was opened in 1947. This club has around 200 mooring spaces for boats. Another big yacht club is the Subic Bay Yacht Club with 150 moorings, which is around 100 km from Manila. There are at least 10 more smaller yacht clubs and marinas that provide berthing facilities in the country. Some are small with not more than 30 moorings but offering reasonable services, while others are called yacht clubs and marinas despite not providing any services at all. Sailing races are very common in yacht clubs of the Philippines, and people all around Asia participate in the regular events that take place there.
As in so many other countries, the high taxation on leisure yachts in the Philippines presents a significant barrier to growth in the country’s leisure boating industry. The tax rate for private yachts is around 42%. Although some clubs offer to register their customers’ boats without tax. But this comes with many restrictions and only within the limited cruising area. It is also a grey area in legislation, and these murky regulations don’t help much to grow the industry.
As in other Asian countries, the government of the Philippines also needs to pay more attention to the boating industry and realize how important it is for their economy. Firstly, the Philippines needs to change its outdated laws and legislation that do not comply with modern, accepted economic practices. Lower taxes will spur the growth of this industry and increase the revenue to government coffers as well as create a new sector of employment. The leisure boating industry requires special skilled jobs that are highly paid compared to standard labor. The availability of such jobs helps to keep educated and skilled people from leaving the country to make more money elsewhere. The growth of the boating industry will also present an opportunity for the Philippines to expand its tourism industry through the yachting sector.
What is also needed in the Philippines is collaboration between the government and the private sector to work together to develop the boating infrastructure. If the private sector works in isolation, it would likely develop hotels and elite marina clubs with high membership fees. Such private clubs may leave out the general public, and make it unaffordable for them to enjoy boating. The government needs to work together with the private sector to come up with plans and take some of the burden of development of the boating infrastructure. They also need to help support maintenance businesses to ensure that cheaper facilities such as moorings and repairs are made available to the middle class.
There is also a safety concern for boaters in the Philippines, because of the pirates that are active in the area and cases of robberies on boats. Unfortunately the Philippines is also infamous for corruption and lengthy paper work. The bureaucratic system just gives the officials and middle men a chance to earn money illegally from visiting boaters who require various papers and clearances.
This is also a very serious deterrent for the growth of the boating industry and the growth of marine tourism in the Philippines.
Despite many issues that need to be solved Philippines has one great advantage over other locations for its boating industry. With so many lush, beautiful islands, the Philippines is truly a beautiful place in Asia to cruise or sail on a boat. It is excellent for diving, snorkeling, thrilling water sports or just cruising through its beautiful islands and beaches. One can sail to an urban chic area, or a rustic fishing village, and both will be astounding. The Philippines is also a popular tourist spot in Asia, but again, if a little more effort is made by the authorities and local businesses, it can attract far more visitors internationally and locally to witness its natural beauty. For a boat owner, it will be one of the best experiences if there is sufficient infrastructure and facilities provided for boaters to refuel, moor and manage their boats safely.
I hope you found this article useful.
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Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Baggy_Sartape/420412
