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Tourist takes photos - Source: ONE News -
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Tourism industry leaders and government have gathered in Wellington to find solutions for the industry as it emerges from the economic downturn.
Around 200 are attending the first NZ Tourism Leaders Symposium organised by the Tourism Industry Association (TIA), including Prime Minister and Tourism Minister John Key, and Reserve Bank deputy governor Grant Spencer.
TIA chief executive Tim Crossar says the symposium is a chance to make decisions on how to maximise the potential of New Zealand's $20.1 billion tourism industry.
"We need to ensure the support is in place to enable this important industry to grow and prosper as it emerges from one of the most challenging trading environments in years," Cossar says.
The TIA says the global tourism industry is taking its first steps beyond recession and the focus now is to grow New Zealand's market share.
Crossar says lack of international demand is the biggest challenge facing operators.
A survey in mid September by the Tourism Industry Monitor showed that while almost half of tourism operators surveyed believed demand would pick up in the next three months, operators were pinning their hopes on Australia and were less certain about long haul markets.
The symposium follows a series of workshops with tourism
operators held around the country in September in which it was
found that investment in international marketing remains one of the
priorities for the industry.
