The McGowan Government has made a record partnership investment with the Western Australian Tourism Operators Council (WAITOC) to make WA the premier destination for authentic Aboriginal cultural experiences.
A four-year funding contract worth $4.32 million has been signed to support WAITOC’s implementation of the Jina: Western Australian Aboriginal Tourism Action Plan 2021-2025.
This funding is on top of Tourism WA’s base funding with WAITOC of $3.6 million, bringing the total funding commitment over the next four years to $7.92 million.
WAITOC is the peak strategy group for promoting and developing Aboriginal tours and experiences in WA, supporting more than 150 businesses.
The Jina Plan was developed by Tourism WA in partnership with WAITOC and other government agencies to build the capacity for Aboriginal people to enter the tourism sector and facilitate the development of Aboriginal cultural experiences to meet the growing demand from visitors.
The new funding agreement will support key WAITOC deliverables of the Jina Plan including:
- delivery of the Aboriginal Tourism Academy, providing business development support and capacity-building for Aboriginal tourism businesses and art centres;
- implementing a business development stream focused on capacity-building of Aboriginal event organisers;
- development of an administration hub housed within WAITOC to provide administration services and back-end support to Aboriginal tourism businesses;
- development of a Welcome to Country database accessible to the wider community and corporate sectors, and to progress the Welcome to Country database to an online bookable service;
- development and installation of new Aboriginal Art Welcomes at Visitor Centres/high-traffic centres located around the State; and
- undertaking marketing campaigns aimed at driving visitation, awareness and education of Aboriginal tourism experiences available on the Dampier Peninsula.
WAITOC has increased its staff numbers to help implement the actions of the Jina Plan, including two new staff members located in Broome.
The Jina Plan is available on Tourism WA’s corporate website.
As stated by Tourism Minister Roger Cook:
“Aboriginal cultural tourism must be the beating heart of WA’s tourism strategy.
“It is the foundation from which everything else should be built upon.
“So the McGowan Government is proud to be supporting this partnership between Tourism WA and WAITOC, which aims to establish WA as the country’s top Aboriginal tourism destination.
“Research has shown there is incredible demand for Aboriginal experiences, and implementation of the Jina Plan will allow visitors to access more of this while travelling around our beautiful State.
“The funding will build WAITOC’s capacity to develop and promote Aboriginal tourism – a very important and unique element of WA’s tourism industry – as we reopen our borders to the rest of the world.”
As stated by Aboriginal Affairs Minister Tony Buti:
“Behind the incredible landscapes and backdrops throughout Western Australia is an incredible history and cultural story – a part of Western Australia that many tourists don’t see.
“As the traditional custodians of the land, with an intrinsic link to country, there are deeply rich cultures to share and many stories to tell.
“This funding agreement will help Aboriginal tourism become a more central part of the visitor experience, as it deserves to be.”
