November 25, 2010 - The Minister of Industry, Tourism, and Investment, Bob McLeod, highlighted the GNWT's commitment to the tourism industry in the NWT during the NWT Tourism AGM.
Thank you and good evening to you all. It is my pleasure to be with you in Inuvik and the spectacular Beaufort Delta region as you gather for your annual general meeting.
This is always an important event for the Northwest Territories tourism industry. It is also an important event for me as Minister of Industry, Tourism and Investment and for the Government of the Northwest Territories. From the outset, this government has recognized the contribution your industry makes to the Northwest Territories economy, over $100 million annually. We have also recognized tourism is a valuable renewable resource, one that is helping the 16th Legislative Assembly achieve its goal of diversifying our economy.
The feedback this government receives from the Northwest Territories Tourism Board of Directors and the Tourism Marketing Advisory Committee is invaluable as we strive to support and develop the industry. Thank you all for the hard work and dedication you have demonstrated in support of our tourism industry, and thank you for the ideas and advice you continue to provide us.
I have said it many times before, and I will say it here again, tourism holds the potential to advance and develop a myriad of jobs, business opportunities and investment in every community of our territory.
Ladies and gentleman, the theme of this annual general meeting and conference is “Expanding Your Horizons.” That theme speaks to the importance of growing and exploring new opportunities. It is an important message to heed in an industry as competitive as tourism. I am pleased that you are embracing that theme here in Inuvik.
The theme also resonates with the Government of the Northwest Territories because we are also looking at expanding our horizons when it comes to investing in our tourism industry. As many of you in this room know, Tourism 2010 is the strategy that has guided this government’s investment in tourism since 2005 in five key areas: marketing, product development, infrastructure, human resource training, and research and planning.
Over the past five years, the Government of the Northwest Territories has invested $5 million in these areas through Tourism 2010. The plan has allowed us to enhance tourism infrastructure at the community level to attract more visitors to the Northwest Territories and to get them to stay longer, the improved conference facilities here in Inuvik are one example of the work that has been done in this area.
It has allowed us to train our operators and staff to enhance their business skills. We’ve seen tourism revenue in the territory grow from $114 million to a peak of $140 million. And we’ve been able to use Tourism 2010 to leverage over $5 million in additional funding from partners that’s been invested in tourism right here in the territory. The plan has served us well.
The time has come to develop a new plan, one that will lead us into a promising future and address the challenges your industry is facing while also assisting you to capitalize on opportunities. My department is currently developing a successor to Tourism 2010. We are doing that through consultations, workshops and roundtables that have been held across the territory with stakeholders like our operators and Northwest Territories Tourism. This consultation is important because any new plan developed must reflect the needs of your industry.
As we continue to develop the new strategy, I want to talk to you this evening about what we must explore in the future to take advantage of the opportunities that are out there. Those opportunities can be summed up in three words:
- Authenticity
- Beauty
- Diversity
When it comes to authenticity, our research shows there is a large and growing market of travellers looking for real experiences. They want to learn something on their trips. They want to know how people once lived, and continue to live, in the destinations they visit.
The Northwest Territories is a perfect fit for this emerging market. It is a perfect fit because of our people and our cultures. Aboriginal culture, in particular, is one of our territory’s greatest and most unique assets.
With more and more travellers looking for authentic Aboriginal cultural experiences to take part in, an opportunity is out there for our industry to take hold of. Now is the time to explore ways to create a sustainable Aboriginal tourism sector. Now is the time for the Government of the Northwest Territories, the tourism industry and Aboriginal people to work together to make this happen.
So let us develop a mechanism to gather input from stakeholders on how to develop a sustainable Aboriginal tourism sector. Let us gather knowledge from Aboriginal tourism champions. Let us mentor Aboriginal tourism entrepreneurs. Let us celebrate our knowledge of the land, our traditional ways, our arts and fine crafts and drum dancing and storytelling and show it off to the world. We need to provide travellers with authentic Aboriginal experiences.
The beauty of our land is also one of our greatest assets and one we must continue to use to grow our tourism industry in the Northwest Territories. Again, our natural wonders are an ideal fit as the market grows for non-consumptive tourism products. Our wilderness, rivers, lakes, wildlife, our midnight sun and our aurora borealis ─ these natural wonders are all extremely attractive to travellers seeking unique outdoor adventures.
As travellers increasingly look for new and exciting areas to hike, explore, camp, photograph, canoe and more, we can use the beauty of the Northwest Territories to bring them here. Our spectacular system of territorial parks and campgrounds can be an important ally in our efforts.
From Twin Falls Territorial Park in the South Slave to Jak Territorial Park right here in Inuvik, our parks and campgrounds are situated in some wonderful natural settings and they serve as a jumping off point to further explore our communities, our people, our cultures and our land and water.
Our parks have always been valuable assets to our tourism industry. But with driving holidays being a growing trend, and in these days of overpopulation, traffic, noise and hustle and bustle of everyday urban life, the rugged, pristine and isolated nature of our parks and campgrounds means they are a more precious asset than ever. And marketing our parks and campground as tourism products must become more of a focus for us.
The third and final way the Government of the Northwest Territories and our tourism partners can expand their horizons is through diversification. As the old saying goes, “variety is the spice of life.” It is also vital for a sustainable tourism sector, because tourism, perhaps more than any other industry, can be greatly affected by events that are beyond our control.
The more diversified our industry is, the greater the variety of products and experiences our operators can provide, the better able our tourism industry is to adapt to these events and remain sustainable. Diversification must be a key aspect of any new government strategy to support the tourism industry. Our recognition of this is why $4.3 million has been invested in product diversification during the life of this government through programs such as the Tourism Product Diversification and Marketing Program. We must strive to do more and offer more to travellers looking to visit unique outdoor adventure destinations.
Ladies and gentlemen, there is little doubt that the past two years have been challenging for the tourism industry. The global economic troubles of the past two years have seen people everywhere cut back on their discretionary spending. They have been travelling less and spending less when they do travel.
But there are positive signs out there that the economic tide has turned and good things are happening in the tourism industry, both nationally and territorially.
From a national tourism perspective, some of the positive signs are that Canada recorded the strongest increase in overnight Japanese arrivals compared to its tourism competitors in the U.S., Australia and the United Kingdom in the first six months of 2010 compared to the same period in 2009. Canada also ranked number one in an annual ranking of nations with the most favourable brand performance. And there were approximately 2.4 million overnight visitors to Canada in August, a two percent increase over the same month in 2009.
From a Northwest Territories perspective, there are some encouraging trends as well. For example:
- Our preliminary statistics show a two percent increase in visitors staying at our campgrounds compared to 2009.
- Our Japanese visitor numbers were strong for the fall 2010 season. With an expected increase for the winter season, Japanese visitor numbers should exceed the 5,400 that came to the Northwest Territories in 2008-2009.
- The number of people visiting friends and relatives in the NWT increased substantially in 2009-2010 compared to 2008-2009. We had 12,910 people visiting friends and relatives in the NWT in 2009-2010 compared to 9,261 in 2008-2009.
- Finally, our investment in Canada’s Northern House during the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics and Paralympics Games is already paying dividends ─ and that’s being felt right here in Inuvik. Many people have said in surveys this summer that a visit to Canada’s Northern House inspired them to drive the Dempster Highway to Inuvik.
The good news doesn’t end there. Canada’s Northern House drew 215,000 visitors and got rave reviews from the public and media such as the Vancouver Province and Globe and Mail newspapers. The Lonely Planet’s 2011 Best in Travel 2011 Guide named Yellowknife as one of its “Top 10 greatest comeback cities”. Frommer’s Travel Guide just named Nahanni National Park as one of its top traveller destinations of 2011.
Clearly the world has cast its gaze towards Canada’s North. Now is the time to capitalize on that interest. We have a unique territory with spectacular sights to see. We have the perfect combination of stunning nature, wildlife, unique cultures and friendly, warm people. This is a combination that can provide travellers with experiences they won’t find anywhere else.
Our industry is well positioned to benefit from what we have to offer. The Government of the Northwest Territories will continue to find ways to wisely use and apply the resources that we have to promote growth in our industry and in your businesses and operations.
We will continue to work with our partners – Northwest Territories Tourism, the Tourism Marketing Advisory Committee and others – to promote our industry and promote the Northwest Territories as a world-class visitor destination. We will continue to pursue partnerships with the Government of Canada and the Canadian Tourism Commission on initiatives that will benefit this industry, allowing it to grow and diversify.
Expand our horizons – this is something we must do to reach our potential as an industry and as a territory. The Government has great confidence we can get there, and by working together we will get there. Thank you.
For more information, contact:
Press Secretary
Office of the Premier/Cabinet
Government of the Northwest Territories
Phone: (867) 669-2302