TRC Director Janet Mackay and TRC Associates Alistair Henchman and Ray Salter returned to Samoa in October to continue work on the Samoa Tourism Growth Partnership. This is a large scale project working with the Samoa Tourism Authority on behalf of the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to generate increased benefits from tourism for Samoa.
The program in its current phase is focussing on three primary areas: marketing into New Zealand, improvements to sites and attractions to strengthen the product offering, and training for tourism businesses in customer services and hospitality. At the same time, TRC is assisting STA with a new program of tourism signage and an upgrade of their website. The project is a two year project, however the partnership approach is aimed at upskilling our partners in Samoa in the program areas for long term success. We are also working to help the community understand the importance of maintaining their assets so that the program will continue to create benefits for the country.
