Event shines a light on key themes of People, Place and Partnership
Tourism has the greatest potential of any sector in the local economy to drive growth in all regions of Northern Ireland, a major industry event was told today.
The NI Tourism Conference 2024 brought together over 300 delegates from local tourism businesses, including hotels, hospitality, visitor attractions and experiences, transport and tour companies, heritage bodies, music venues, airports, distilleries and many more.
Hosted by Tourism NI with participation from Tourism Ireland and other partners from NI’s 11 local Councils, more that 60% of the delegates at the event in Titanic Belfast came from the tourism industry outside of Belfast.
The conference, which had the theme People, Place and Partnership, heard from a range of inspiring and interactive speakers and panels from the industry, and was reminded that tourism is a force for good in Northern Ireland, contributing over £1bn to the economy and almost 75,000 jobs, of which 70% are outside Belfast.
Speaking at the conference, Economy Minister Conor Murphy announced his intention to create a new Tourism Partnership Board to help develop and oversee the implementation of a new action plan for the sector.
Addressing delegates, the Minister said tourism is one of our most important economic sectors and key to dispersing wealth right across the region and improving productivity.
“With 70% of jobs located outside of Belfast, the benefits of tourism are spread throughout the region. And given that the industry is primarily made up of local SMEs, we can be confident that these benefits are retained and reinvested locally.
“I have set out my plans to help grow tourism even further. I will soon establish a Tourism Partnership Board to work with me and the Department to develop an Action Plan to enable the industry to continue to grow, and to grow in a way that aligns with my Economic Vision of a productive, regionally balanced, net zero economy with good jobs.
“In my engagements as Economy Minister, whether that is meeting Tourism operators in the US or attending events closer to home, I’ve been hugely impressed with the industry’s optimism, energy, and ambition.
“I see the industry as a success story and commend all those who have contributed to that success. My Department will work with you to write the next chapter of that success story.”
John McGrillen, Chief Executive of Tourism NI said: “This is an exciting time for tourism and it is significant that this conference is taking place today with a restored Northern Ireland Executive. I welcome the Minister’s formation of a group that will help develop and implement a new Strategic Action Plan for Tourism.
“The Strategic Action Plan will be co-designed and co-delivered with the industry. It will include actions on issues that we know are important to the sector such as sustainability, skills, hotel development and lobbying on the Electronic Travel Authorisation scheme and VAT levels. As the Minister said, with significant financial challenges, it is crucial that we act in a strategic and effective manner that minimises duplication, and at pace. I therefore welcome the Minister’s intention to bring forward an Action Plan and Tourism NI will play its full part in both developing and delivering on that to help us realise our shared vision of continued growth of the tourism sector.
“In doing so I believe tourism will benefit all parts of the region in a way that no other industry we have locally can do, providing good jobs that assist with the regional balance in the workforce and helping increase productivity.”
The Tourism Conference heard from a number of speakers during the day including TV presenter, architect and sustainability expert George Clarke; specialist in talent and high-performance culture Adrian Webster; digital strategy and transformation leader Ciaran Connolly; Dr Paul Mullan from the Heritage Lottery Fund; Kerrie Sweeney of Maritime Belfast Trust; and Aeidin McCarter from Derry City & Strabane District Council.
Delegates also heard about Tourism NI’s continued focus on People in the year ahead, as well as its plans for marketing activity and the launch of an all-island Sustainability Assurance Programme.