Sun, water sports, more hotels, and better transportation system are expected to propel the country's booming tourism sector into a $17- billion industry this year, government officials said Friday.

National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Director Dennis Arroyo said the country’s natural wonders, complemented by improved tourism infrastructure, have attracted more local and foreign tourists to the Philippines.

“By 2010, the industry’s contribution to gross domestic product is targeted to reach US $17 billion or 13.6 percent of GDP,” Arroyo told reporters in Malacañang.

At least 5.2 million local and foreign tourists visited the Philippines in 2009, or 16.66 percent higher than 2008.

Arroyo said the Philippines could compete as an attractive tourist destination due to its proximity to northeast Asia, particularly Japan, China, and South Korea, world-class natural attractions, and ability to create substantial niche markets.

The country’s main selling point, he noted, is marine biodiversity that has promoted diving and other water sports activities in many islands.

“We have sun all year round,” Deputy Presidential Spokesman Ricardo Saludo said of the country’s warm weather that attracts foreigners and enable them to take a respite from the chilly weather in their homelands.

At present, Camarines Sur tops the list of tourist destinations in the country, with a total of 1.29 million tourist traffic last year. South Koreans and Americans are leading the pack of foreign tourists in the country.

Arroyo said the country’s tourism sector is also booming after the successful promotional activities taken by the Department of Tourism, expansion of low-cost carriers and operation of more chartered flights.

“The use of existing airports, hotels, and transportation systems was maximized as the number of tourists increased and stayed longer,” he added.

Arroyo said he hopes the next administration could continue to prioritize tourism as driver of economic growth.

“Why is tourism important for the economy? It can serve as a powerful growth engine because it is global in size; the Philippines has strong potential for tourism industry; the industry can accommodate large levels of investment, its local value-added is very high, it create direct and indirect jobs, it generates huge foreign exchange inflows, and it can be developed quickly,” he said.

To achieve its growth target for the year, Arroyo said the government should continue to improve tourism infrastructure, particularly hotels and road networks, more air service agreements, and easy visa requirements.

He also suggested that the vigorous development and promotion of the country as retirement haven for Filipinos working abroad.

“We have 1.7 million Filipino-Americans who will retire by 2015. That’s a very big market. They worked hard in the US and they save money, and they come home to retire because it’s much cheaper here. We should tap that,” he added.