Business Events Industry Aotearoa, the convention bureau for New Zealand, has added NZ$3 million of funding
to its Conference Assistance Programme, in a move, it said, would 'level the playing field' with its main competitor.
The extra funding for the programme - a type of subvention to provide financial support
and other forms of assistance to event organisations - acts to secure business
events that will deliver more than NZ$30 million in incremental spend to the
economy.
New Zealand's minister of tourism and hospitality, Louise
Upston, made the announcement at Tākina
Wellington Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wellington.
“To boost conference visitor numbers, it makes sense to
supercharge the Conference Assistance Programme work that is already happening
in Tourism New Zealand,” Upston said.
BEIA chief executive, Lisa Hopkins added,“It signals that
New Zealand is actively recognising the importance of business events, and this
new funding helps level the playing field with our main competitor, Australia.
“This is a high-spend, high-value sector. The global
business events industry is valued at $1.6 trillion USD.
“New Zealand's business events industry has come of age with
investment in world-class infrastructure with new conventions centres, Te Pae
Christchurch and Tākina in Wellington, and the New Zealand International
Convention Centre in Auckland opening early next year,” Hopkins says.
The three new convention centres are expected to create 1,400
new jobs, over 300,000 room nights annually and direct spend in excess of NZ$150
million. This excludes downstream economic contribution or when the
international delegate stays on as a tourist and visits other parts of the
country.
According to recent Infometrics analysis, Te Pae contributed
NZ$77 million to New Zealand's GDP and supported 693 full-time equivalent (FTE)
jobs across the country for the year to November 2024.
“Business events are much more than economic contributors,
they also heavily influence positive outcomes for society, communities, and
create long-term legacies, and they lift New Zealand on the world stage,”
Hopkins added.
“Business events visitors meet at off-peak times, boosting
the visitor spend during the week and throughout winter and shoulder seasons.
They stay longer, and spend more than leisure visitors.
A desire to travel led Holly Patrick to the business meetings and events world and she’s never looked back. Holly takes a particular interest in event sustainability and creating a diverse and inclusive industry. When she’s not working, she can be found rolling skating along Brighton seafront listening to an eclectic playlist, featuring the likes of Patti Smith, Sean Paul, and Arooj Aftab.
