[HALIFAX, NS] — A three-year renewal of funding for the Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (ACTP) was announced today.
The $19,950,000 agreement is designed to position Atlantic Canada as a leading travel destination.
On hand for the announcement were tourism industry representatives and Bernard Valcourt, Associate Minister of National Defence and Minister of State (Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency) (La Francophonie), Terry French, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation for Newfoundland and Labrador and Government Co-chair for ACTP, and Joanne Bérubé Gagné, Industry Co-chair of the ACTP Management Committee.
ACTP is dedicated to promoting Atlantic Canada as a leading vacation destination in priority markets in the United States of America and the United Kingdom. Over the next three years, this pan-Atlantic partnership will focus its efforts and resources on being market-driven, strategic, efficient and innovative.
The Government of Canada, through ACOA, will invest $9,975,000 in the ACTP. The multi-year project involves the pooling of resources for international marketing from the nine-member, pan-Atlantic partnership comprised of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, the four provincial departments responsible for tourism, and the four provincial tourism industry associations.
"The ACTP agreement extends the reach of the Nova Scotia tourism brand into priority markets that we would be unable to reach on our own," said Percy Paris, Minister of Economic and Rural Development and Tourism. "This agreement promotes regional cooperation and at the same time creates unique opportunities for increased visitation and increased growth of export revenues in Nova Scotia."
The ACTP marketing consortium has a direct-to-consumer approach which includes advertising, media relations and joint marketing accords with tour operators that yield millions of dollars in export revenues.
“Our industry’s collective contribution in, and commitment to, the ACTP, has generated significant gains for tourism in Atlantic Canada,” said Ms. Bérubé Gagné. “It is important for industry to sit at the table with the provincial governments and ACOA to map out go-forward plans for a prosperous future in tourism. Without ACTP, many of the opportunities gained through the partnership would simply be unattainable.”
ACTP has proven to be an effective marketing partnership. Since its inception, ACTP’s consumer marketing efforts in the United States have generated almost 580,000 party visits and more than $695 million in revenues for tourism businesses in Atlantic Canada. On average, ACTP’s marketing efforts have generated almost $15.00 in visitor spending for every $1.00 invested in direct-to-consumer advertising in the United States. In overseas markets, ACTP’s joint marketing agreements with European tour operators have generated more than $86 million in revenues for tourism businesses in Atlantic Canada.
