DAVAO CITY – The revival of the air service connecting Davao and Manado is seen to further boost investment and tourism activities between Mindanao and North Sulawesi, Indonesia.
The Davao-Manado route, which will be serviced by the Indonesian Carrier Garuda Indonesia, offers direct and easy travel to attract investment exploration, tourist visits between the two areas.
“This is a strategic route under the transport and connectivity of the BIMP-EAGA that strengthens Mindanao, through Davao, as gateway in ASEAN”, MinDA Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said.
The revival of the route will bring more investors and tourists to Mindanao.
“We are happy with this development because this opens wider economic opportunities especially in tourism and trade, Mindanao has a lot to offer”, MinDA Secretary Piñol added.
Garuda CEO Ari Askhara is also optimistic that the new service will boost economic and cultural ties between North Sulawesi and Mindanao.
“We do hope that this Davao-Manado service will further boost economic, trade and tourism activities, offering easier access for travelers in Davao, one of the central business city in southern Philippines, to various destinations in North Sulawesi”, the CEO said.
The route will be serviced with ATR 72-600 aircraft with an all economy class configuration capable of carrying 70 passengers.
“We will do our best to give customer-friendly rates for the flights. We offer eco-special promo rate of 883,000 IDR or less than Php 7,000.00 roundtrip fare this 30 September, Monday,” said Garuda Airlines Sales Manager Llywi Prado.
Meantime, BIMP-EAGA Facilitation Centre Head Susanna Chew said that for the air link to be sustainable, complementary economic efforts must be pursued.
“Both countries should look at larger economic and long-term partnerships by creating meaningful economic activities between the two areas to encourage more travelers and economic exchange,” she stressed out.
MinDA Assistant Secretary Romeo Montenegro said that “the revival of the air link complements the ongoing Davao-Bitung (DG) EAGA sea connectivity launched in April 2017 by Presidents Rodrigo Duterte and Joko Widodo”.
The maiden flight departs Manado at 10:30AM carrying Garuda Airlines officials, North Sulawesi and Manado local government executives, officials of Philippine Consulate – Manado Office, and some travel agents. The flight is expected to arrive in Davao International Airport at 12:30PM.
An airport welcome reception will be graced by Philippine and Indonesian diplomats, officials of local governments, Philippine-EAGA lead agencies, and business representatives.
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