OSOYOOS – The Province of British Columbia has provided $1 million to support the growth of Aboriginal tourism in B.C.

The funding will go directly to the Aboriginal Tourism Association of BC (AtBC) to support their ongoing marketing strategy, Citizens’ Services and Open Government Minister Ben Stewart announced at the National Aboriginal Tourism Opportunities Conference in Osoyoos today.

As of April 1, provincial tourism marketing will become the responsibility of Destination British Columbia, a new industry-led, formula-funded Crown corporation. Future funding for all tourism marketing partnerships will be under their purview.

According to an interim evaluation report prepared by Simon Fraser University’s Centre for Tourism Policy and Research, the following results were achieved during AtBC’s previous 5-year strategy:

 

• Overall incidence of travelers in B.C. experiencing Aboriginal tourism attractions / products / services increased from about 13 per cent to an estimated 22 per cent.
• Estimated 3.7 million tourists experienced some form of Aboriginal tourism (e.g., attractions, products, services, events, etc.) as part of their provincial trips in 2010. This represents an almost doubling (97 per cent) of estimated 2006 visit levels.
• Estimated Aboriginal tourism expenditures in B.C. reached about $40 million in the 2010 Olympic year. This represents a 6 per cent increase over estimated 2009 levels and a doubling (100 per cent) over 2006 levels.
• Based on overall visitor expenditure estimates, it is estimated that Aboriginal tourists contributed about $11.3 million in tax revenues to various levels of government in 2010.
• An estimated 2,226 full-time equivalent jobs were collectively generated by Aboriginal tourism businesses in 2010, representing approximately a 32 per cent increase over those reported in 2006.

Aboriginal tourism is one of the key product priorities included in the B.C. government’s Tourism Strategy.