Ever had a big idea for a tourism business at Uluru? Now is your chance to make that idea a reality.
At Uluru Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment Bob Baldwin and Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park’s Board of Management chairperson Sammy Wilson today announced a call for culturally appropriate and environmentally sensitive business and investment ideas in the park.
“The Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park’s Board of Management put out this call today to encourage investment in their business – one of our most beloved, world-renowned tourism destinations,” Mr Baldwin said.
“The Board is made up of a majority of traditional owners of this very special place.
I applaud them for their vision. By making this call they intend to increase the visitor experiences on offer, increasing visitor numbers and enhancing people’s understanding of their country and culture, while boosting job and training opportunities for their own community.
“Additional revenue will also be reinvested in the park to protect it for future Australians to enjoy and help us protect the World Heritage listed Uluru and Kata Tjuta.
“I’m very pleased this call is going out in NAIDOC Week – when we come together to celebrate and commemorate the contribution of all first Australians. With this year’s theme that we all stand on sacred ground, I’m pleased to be standing with the Board on this sacred ground to support their work.
“This is a great opportunity for the park, for the community, for visitors, for Australian tourism and for the Red Centre region, the heart of the Northern Territory.”
Board chairperson Sammy Wilson said the traditional owners wanted people with good ideas to come and talk together.
“This is a beautiful place to bring strong ideas where we can work together, look towards the future and create something to be proud of,” Mr Wilson said.
Minister for Trade and Investment, with responsibility for tourism, Andrew Robb, said Uluru and the Red Centre presented exciting investment opportunities for the tourism industry, given the area is one of Australia’s most iconic destinations.
“100 million Chinese went on an international holiday last year, and this is set to double to some 200 million by 2020. With targeted investment in the right kind of high-quality infrastructure, Australia is perfectly positioned to capture a growing share of this lucrative market,” Mr Robb said.
“The Board is looking for fresh, exciting and engaging experiences and commercial activities to complement the existing products on offer. They want experiences that are welcoming and engaging, that help achieve social and economic benefits for the park’s traditional owners.”
Mr Robb said the initiative will complement the work being undertaken by the government as part of the Northern Australia White Paper, with a major investment forum to be held in Darwin later this year, to attract investors and expose them to investor-ready projects in the north.
“The tourism opportunities for Australia are immense, but they won’t fall into our laps; I certainly encourage businesses and investors to put forward exciting high-quality ideas to the Board, to help secure the future potential of this truly magnificent national icon,” Mr Robb said.
Expressions of Interest open today and you have until 30 September 2015 to apply.
Go to the website eoi.uluru.gov.au to apply or email ulurueoi@environment.com.au.
