QUEENSLAND NEEDS TO COMPETE
THE Queensland Tourism Industry Reference Panel has recommended the creation of a Business Events Strategy, as part of an action plan to speed up Queensland’s post-pandemic recovery and ensure the longterm success of the state’s visitor economy.
At the request of the Queensland Government, the panel made a series of recommendations, including an $80 million increase for the events and destination marketing fund, in its ‘Towards 2023: Reshaping Queensland’s visitor economy to welcome the world’ report released this week.
Australia’s business events sector is worth around $35.7 billion the report highlighted, but only 16% of the country’s business events are hosted in Queensland, compared to 55% in NSW and Victoria, collectively.
The panel recommends a Business Events Strategy to ensure a strong return on the $14 million the state government has allocated to bids for conference and business events over the next two years.
The panel said the strategy should identify Queensland’s comparative advantages and diverse offerings; identify and deliver conferences that align with the particular assets and capacities of a destination; and better align the efforts of relevant government departments and convention bureaus.
The funding, which is usually allocated annually, should also be committed on a three or fouryear basis to better align with the business event bidding cycle, the panel suggested.
In a snapshot of what Queensland’s business events sector will look like in 2032 if the recommendations are followed, the panel envisions “our calendar will include major events and global business gatherings; visitors will criss-cross the state, including via electric vehicle-enabled touring routes” - click Here to view the full action plan.