Niue's tourism plan defended

Transcript

Niue's tourism authority board says its own plans to grow tourism will define the industry's goals more clearly than the current strategic plan.

Niue wants to increase visitor numbers next year by 70 per cent to 10,000.

The current strategic plan called Tourism Unleashed, was written by an Auckland photographer with links to Niue, Charles Cooper, and prompted the resignation of the board's chairperson Teressa Scott earlier this month.

The plan includes suggestions to slaughter the sacred cows and to zig when others zag.

The board's acting chairperson, Sonya Talagi, told Daniela Maoate-Cox the strategic plan uses an unconventional format but the board is confident it can build on it to develop Niue's tourism.

SONYA TALAGI: As a board we had agreed that it wasn't in the most conventional format, however we did feel that there were targets and goals within the strategic plan that were achievable so over the past week we've been working on developing a business plan which is I think a simpler form of reading the intentions of the strategic plan. But in saying that, having read the strategic plan and come across people that don't understand it, you really have to read it in its entirety. It's actually quite full of goals and targets and objectives and directives on how we can look at improving the way we develop tourism.

DANIELA MAOATE-COX: You said that there are clear targets in this plan but can you give me an example of what some of those are and the methods that will be used to achieve those targets?

ST: Some of the targets that we've worked on for example would be to have ten extra people per flight from now up until the 30th of June 2015, we are looking at ways we can improve our reach of people using technology that's available now, you've got Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and all these things which for us is a challenge because we don't have the internet capacity to reach that from Niue. What we have asked for is the development of a hothouse concept and this is where we're looking at establishing steering committees or groups to investigate ways we can improve infrastructure or other ideas that will benefit not just tourism but Niue as a whole. I think the broadband is a classic example of that.

DM-C: But the criticism towards that aspect of the plan is that improving the internet access is an infrastructure issue not a tourism issue, what's your response to that?

ST: Well, you're right it shouldn't come out of the tourism budget but in saying that, tourism does not exist in a vacuum. We need to have the supporting infrastructure otherwise there's no point in bringing in people.

DM-C: Overall, are you confident with this plan and the goals that it outlines?

ST: I'm comfortable and confident with this plan in that it is an evolution of the past plan, I think we are trying to hone in not only on efficiency but also the type of visitor that comes to Niue. We need to be careful about our target markets.

DM-C: Is there also detail in this plan on how they will attract that market?

ST: Well that's what the business plan was for and subsequently that's what the marketing plan will be for.