DOT Prepares Boracay for ASEAN Meet in March

ASEAN leaders posing with Boracay’s iconic paraw and sandcastle after the December conference. 📸 ASEAN.org

by Jun N. Aguirre

The Department of Tourism-Western Visayas (DOT-WV) prepares Boracay to be ASEAN-ready by conducting training sessions from February 17-20, to help strengthen the professionalism and competitiveness of the local tour guides in preparation for the ASEAN activities this March. 

Workshops include tour guiding and spiel development, protocol, social graces and etiquette for tourism stakeholders and accredited regional tour and community guides.

The Police Regional Office expressed confidence in strengthened ASEAN cooperation after the successful three-day Senior Economic Officials’ Meeting (SEOM) Retreat that was held at the Mövenpick Resort last December 10-13, 2025.

Police Brigadier General Josefino Ligan, regional police head and commander of the Site Task Group ASEAN Boracay, emphasized the importance of the SEOM as the first Chairmanship meeting in the Philippines for ASEAN 2025-2026. 

According to Ligan, the ASEAN meeting in Boracay was a preparatory meeting for the formulation of the five-year strategic roadmap with a focus on economic integration, climate resilience and people-to-people exchanges.

A post on the ASEAN Facebook page last December 16 says: “Beyond hosting ASEAN, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), in collaboration with multiple government agencies and the National Organizing Committee (NOC), partnered with the local government of Aklan and the Boracay community to deliver not only an efficient regional meeting but also a meaningful and memorable experience for all, unifying Filipinos under the Chairship’s theme “Navigating Our Future, Together,” it said.

Aside from the meetings, the economic ministers also toured Boracay, including a private sunset cruise. Among the 1,500 security personnel were police personnel, firefighters, rescue volunteers, medical doctors and nurses, among others.