Atlantic Canada Agreement on Tourism:

Book excerpt: The three-year (1997-2000) Atlantic Canada Agreement on Tourism was delivered by a partnership consisting of the four Atlantic tourism industry associations & provincial governments, and the federal government through Tourism Atlantic. The Agreement focussed on three areas: destination marketing in international markets, product marketing to the touring trade, and product development. This report describes & presents results of an evaluation of the Agreement that considered three major issues: the relevance of the Agreement, related to benefits & the Agreement's incremental nature; achievements in terms of industry growth, market readiness, lessons learned from projects in long-haul markets, and promotion of non-peak travel; and cost-effectiveness issues (including co-ordination with the Canadian Tourism Commission, governance & management, the roles of Agreement partners, and achievement of economies of scale). The final chapter presents recommendations on strategic direction & decision-making and on the organization & management of resources to support the policy & planning process and the implementation of projects.