Boracay was emerging among the top destinations for tranquility and nightlife. Boracay was awarded as the 2012 best island in the world from the international travel magazine "Travel + Leisure". In 2014, the resort island was at the top of the "Best Islands in the World" list published by the international magazine Condé Nast Traveler. In 2016, Boracay headed the magazine's list of "Top 10 destinations to watch". In April 2018 the Philippine Government decreed a 6-month closure of the island for tourists to undertake major renovation works, especially of the sewerage system, which had become obsolete and insufficient.. It re-opened
2018 Boracay closure and redevelopment resolve the worsening sewage conditions there. Duterte has directed Environment secretary Roy Cimatu to resolve the environmental issues in the island. Boracay is part of the jurisdiction of the town of Malay of Aklan province. Three of Malay's barangays are in Boracay. According to the Western Visayas regional office of the Department of Tourism, Boracay had two million tourists in 2017 which accounts for 34 percent of Western Visayas' 5.8 million tourist arrivals. At least 19,031 are employed to work on the island. Waters along the beaches of Boracay have experienced algal bloom which environmentalists and some long-time residents claim