After more than two years of unprecedented disruption as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism community is in its recovery phase. Throughout, TIA has accepted the necessity of the various control measures and has advocated strongly that each of the measures be removed as quickly as they can in the interests of removing barriers to travel.
The last COVID-related measure in place is the New Zealand Traveller Declaration (NZTD) and TIA is working with Government on the transition or removal of this. If it does remain, TIA will advocate for it to be highly streamlined and without duplication with other requirements.
TIA is focused on ensuring there are no New Zealand-imposed impediments that impact the flow of international visitors to New Zealand.
Industry Recovery
Industry focus is very much oriented to recovery, and to recover in such a way that the industry delivers better and wider benefits for Aotearoa New Zealand.
Rebuilding of tourism businesses themselves is underway, and there are challenges to this:
- Rebuilding the workforce is an immediate difficulty for many businesses as people have left the industry and with fewer overseas workers available.
- Global supply-chain issues mean that rebuilding some of the physical network will be slower than ideal, for instance with restoring rental car fleets.
- Business processes need to be restored, with these including connections to the supply chain, product processes, and health and safety.
- Connections to markets also need to be restored, including the personal relationships that are so important in tourism.
The sustainable recovery of the tourism industry will have positive flow-on benefits for New Zealand’s prosperity including by holding at bay a recession and laying the foundation for wider economic recovery.
Industry Reset
Considerable effort has been given to the future of tourism through the COVID period. Much of this has been led by the government in partnership with industry, firstly with the Tourism Futures Taskforce and then the Tourism Industry Transformation Plan on the Tourism Workforce. The next phase of the ITP work will be on the Environment commencing is late 2022 and then the third phase on Sustainable Tourism Funding commencing in 2023.
TIA is the custodian of the industry’s Tourism 2025 & Beyond – A Sustainable Growth Framework Kaupapa Whakapakari Tāpoi. With 2025 just around the corner, and new and emerging challenges, TIA is leading development of a new strategic framework to guide the future of the tourism industry in Aotearoa. This will provide a clear articulation of the longer-term aspirations of the industry and the key things we need to do to get there. This will be released in early 2023. TIA will work with MBIE, DOC and TNZ officials to ensure continued alignment with the Government’s own tourism and visitor strategies.
Recent wins:
Blue sky day for ski as pre-departure testing dropped (June 2022)
Tourism industry excited by next phase of border reopening (May 2022)
Kia ora cobber! NZ tourism industry thrilled at border reopening plans (March 2022)
