Minister Barr: Tourism industry booming: more jobs and dollars in CBR economy
- Written by ACT Government
Released 04/08/2016
The Canberra tourism industry is booming according to new data released by Tourism Research Australia this morning. The value of tourism to the ACT economy has increased, as have the number of Canberrans employed in the tourism sector.
Building on the strengths of our tourism industry is a key part of this government’s plan to diversify the territory economy, so it’s great to see such strong growth in this vital industry. Tourism is set to reach new heights now that the government has attracted direct international flights. In September the first Singapore Airlines flights from Wellington and Singapore will arrive, which will be a game changer for our economy – especially tourism.
The State Tourism Satellite Accounts 2014-15 update reports that tourism contributes around $2 billion to the ACT economy which is a 17.7 per cent increase on 2013-14 figures. This represents 5.7 per cent of all ACT Gross State Product.
Also on the rise was the number of Canberrans employed in the tourism sector. There are now 16,400 Canberrans employed in tourism – a 20.5 per cent increase on 2013-14 figures, representing 7.8 per cent of all ACT employment.
This is fantastic news for Canberra – particularly when combined with the record number of national and international visitors released by Tourism Research Australia’s Visitor Surveys earlier this year.
My government is working with the ACT tourism industry to attract more visitors through VisitCanberra’s One Good Thing After Another marketing positioning, with a goal of growing the ACT’s overnight visitor expenditure to $2.5 billion by 2020. Today’s figures show that we are well on track to reaching this goal.
- Statement ends -
Section: Andrew Barr, MLA | Media Releases
