RTO joint venture funding

Media release – RTO joint venture funding

The announcement today by the Minister of Tourism, Prime Minister John Key, detailing the allocation of the $10 million Joint Venture funding between Regional Tourism Organisations, the private sector and Tourism New Zealand, is the culmination of a huge amount of hard work and cooperation over a very short time, by a large and diverse number of stakeholders, to get this initiative off the ground.

Don Gunn, Chair of Regional Tourism Organisations New Zealand (RTONZ) says that this commitment by Government to investment in the industry, as we come out of challenging recessionary times of late, will be a fantastic boost to New Zealand tourism.

The pool of money, 50% Government and 50% regional tourism and private sector contributions will make a significant marketing difference in our primary market – Australia.

The regional groups involved will be able to take their own distinctive flavour and marketing styles to the market, to create an exciting mix of offerings which will provide compelling reasons for Australians to visit New Zealand – now.

The flow on effect of increased visitor numbers will go well beyond the 8 groupings that have been allocated funding to benefit all regions. New Zealand is a country Australians love to explore from top to bottom, and all regions stand to capitalise and benefit from these initiatives.

I believe this is the start of a new era in the way that regions market off-shore, and we have proved, through the ability to cluster together effectively, that joint ventures can be a successful method of getting more grunt in our key source markets, said Mr Gunn. We look forward to building on this collaboration and enhancing the JV’s in future years.

The Government deserves all credit for delivering this opportunity, and I commend the regions and the private sector for stepping up to partner in this first year initiative. It will be money well spent.

ENDS

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