Greater Shepparton City Council has joined a new Visitor Economy Partnership, named the Goulburn Region Tourism Inc, alongside two other Local Government Areas as a way to strengthen and grow the visitor economy of the region.
Council's membership was approved at the December Council Meeting on Tuesday, with the entity to be co-funded by the Victorian Government and be the official peak body to support tourism in the region.
The partnership includes Strathbogie Shire Council and Mitchell Shire Council, and comes as a new approach from the Victorian Government to improve regional tourism across the state. The Visitor Economy Partnerships will deliver supply and demand activities, such as advocacy, policy development and marketing to support the growth of the regions involved.
Mayor, Councillor Shane Sali, said joining the partnership was an appropriate decision for Greater Shepparton to help strengthen its growing visitor economy.
"It has been an incredibly long journey to get to this point and we are all extremely excited about the future and growth opportunities of our amazing region," he said.
"Without a Visitor Economy Partnership, Greater Shepparton's visitor economy will continue to not be officially represented at a state level. Our region, alongside Strathbogie Shire Council and Mitchell Shire Council, were prioritised to transition to this partnership from the Victorian Government due to the lack of current representation by a Regional Tourism Board."
Cr Sali said the partnership would also assist Council to further advocate for investment into the visitor economy, creating a broader range of activities available for both local residents and visitors to experience.
"It will help us unlock the potential of our region as a destination, with visitor economy businesses, organisations and events to benefit. We look forward to seeing the positive results from this partnership," he said.
