Tuesday, June 18, 2019
Tourism is thriving in Canada, bringing in record numbers of international visitors in 2017 and 2018, and the federal, provincial and territorial governments are collaborating on shared opportunities to unlock the growth potential of the visitor economy. This will help position Canada as a top tourism destination in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.
Geoff MacLellan, Minister of Business and Minister responsible for Tourism Nova Scotia, hosted this year's Canadian Council of Tourism Ministers (CCTM) in Halifax on June 17. Mélanie Joly, Minister of Tourism, Official Languages and La Francophonie, was represented by Guylaine Roy, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Official Languages and La Francophonie, and joined the meeting by teleconference to present the new federal tourism strategy.
Governments across the country recognize tourism is an economic generator and can create good jobs. Ministers and senior officials discussed shared goals for the tourism sector, including spreading the benefits of tourism to communities across the country, increasing visitation outside of the peak tourism season, and developing compelling new experiences and products.
They also discussed the importance of shared leadership and whole of government approaches to addressing challenges such as labour shortages and visitor dispersion.
In addition, Destination Canada and the Tourism Industry Association of Canada gave presentations on the future of Canada's tourism sector from domestic and international perspectives and strategies to address shared challenges.
Michele Saran, CEO of Tourism Nova Scotia also attended the meetings and gave an overview of Nova Scotia’s tourism strategy.
Total Canadian tourism revenues in 2018 from domestic and international travellers were $102.1 billion, an increase of 5.2% over 2017. Here in Nova Scotia, we had our best tourism revenue year on record in 2018 – reaching $2.61 billion in tourism revenues. We look forward to continuing to work with provincial tourism organizations across Canada to help the tourism industry reach its full potential.
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