Central Economic Development Agency (CEDA) has received $1 million dollars of government funding to support the recovery and reset of regional tourism in Manawatū.
This new round, announced by Minister Nash on the 17th of August, has allocated $26.6 million across the 31 Regional Tourism Organisations in Aotearoa from the Tourism Communities: Support, Recovery and Reset Plan to sustainably develop, manage and market the visitor.
“Tourism agencies in our regions work hard behind the scenes to ensure they can deliver on their promise to visitors. We all want tourism to be sustainable, well-managed, and for everyone with a stake in the visitor economy to collaborate,” says Nash.
CEDA’s Communications and Marketing Manager Janet Reynolds says domestic tourism in the region climbed exponentially post the COVID-19 lockdown last year, and the recent $1 million dollars of government funding will support the recovery and reset of regional tourism in Manawatū.
“This additional funding will help us to build upon the outcomes our region has already achieved and support the visitor sector to remain sustainable in the future,” says Reynolds.
“The visitor sector in Manawatū has been strong for a sustained period, and just prior to COVID-19 it was worth more than $500 million to our economy, providing a widespread impact across retail, hospitality, events, and more.”
“This additional funding will help us to build upon the outcomes our region has already achieved and support the visitor sector to remain sustainable in the future.”
“The news is a welcome boost to Regional Tourism Organisations across the country and warmly welcomed by the team at CEDA who can’t wait to get stuck into supporting the Manawatū visitor economy to grow and thrive in a sustainable and collaborative way,” says Janet.
To secure the funding, CEDA developed and submitted a comprehensive investment plan to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) outlining the areas of focus for the funding.
“We’ll be focusing this funding on projects that provide long term benefits for our region and the visitor sector, including a refresh of the Manawatū Destination Management Plan to ensure a truly transformational strategy is in place to future proof our region.”
“The funding will also focus on developing and lifting industry capability, product development and enhancement including The Country Road experience, and domestic marketing to lift our profile and drive visitation here, particularly in the shoulder seasons.”
The four areas of focus will be:
Destination Management – A refresh and re-engagement of the Manawatū Destination Management Plan to reflect our COVID-19 environment and bring partners and stakeholders on board. Implementation and resourcing of the Rangitāne o Manawatū Tourism Strategy.
Product Development – This work will focus on cluster development within the visitor sector, enhancement of The Country Road, Coastal Arts Trail and product opportunities particularly focused around Te Āpiti.
Capability Development – capability development programmes to future proof the sector and lift capability, thereby enhancing visitor experience.
Domestic Marketing – lift our profile and drive visitation here, particularly in the shoulder seasons. Development of long-term regional assets eg imagery, signage, and video with the new regional identity to ensure we get maximum longevity out of this funding.
The $200 million Tourism Communities: Support, Recovery and Re-set Plan will be rolled out between now and 2022.
For more information:
[email protected]
06 350 1830
