Funding round opens for Tourism Growth Partnership

22 August 2013

Funding round opens for Tourism Growth Partnership

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment is calling for tourism operators to submit investment proposals for the first funding round of the Tourism Growth Partnership.

The TGP is a government initiative aimed at boosting innovation and lifting productivity to generate greater commercial and wider returns from international visitors. $8 million will be available each year to co-fund projects that will create new opportunities and overcome barriers to growth in the tourism sector.

The TGP is administered by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). Robyn Henderson, MBIE’s Tourism Policy Manager, says that there has already been significant interest in the TGP from tourism operators across New Zealand.

“We have met with tourism operators and organisations in several regions, and we have also received a large volume of emails and phone calls seeking more information about the TGP.”

Eligible co-investors may be individual businesses, or consortia of businesses and other participants. Investment and collaborative input will also be accepted from industry associations, regional tourism organisations, iwi and hapu.

Ms Henderson says that an Independent Panel of Experts from the private sector will assess all the proposals received and determine which should be advanced.

“Those applicants will then be asked to develop business plans. The first round of applicants can expect to hear back before the end of 2013 about whether their proposals have been selected for development into business plans.”

The Independent Panel of Experts will then provide advice on business plans to the Chief Executive of MBIE, who will decide which projects will receive TGP investment and approve funding agreements.

Applications for the first round must be submitted by 1 November 2013. The application form is available at: http://www.med.govt.nz/sectors-industries/tourism/tourism-growth-partnership.

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