City of Perth Commissioners approved a new one-year $230,000 sponsorship for Business Events Perth (BE Perth) at last week’s Special Council Meeting.
BE Perth, previously known as Perth Convention Bureau, is responsible for attracting international and interstate business events to Western Australia.
The City of Perth sponsorship will continue to support BE Perth in its destination marketing and bid development, to attract events and conferences to Western Australia. In addition, it will allow BE Perth to run the flagship City of Perth Aspire Award, which supports local talent in their professional development through attendance at international conferences.
The sponsorship is part of the City’s COVID-19 Grants and Sponsorship Program, which was developed to ensure Perth is positioned to rebound quickly following the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chair Commissioner Andrew Hammond said sponsorships of this nature are core to supporting jobs and driving future visitation to Perth.
“High profile conferences and conventions held in the State bring significant economic benefits to local businesses and the tourism sector, which has been hit hard in recent times,” he said.
“The City sponsorship will support BE Perth to attract major events, such as the world’s largest marine mammal conference which BE Perth recently secured to converge in Perth in 2023, injecting $10 million into the local economy.”
BE Perth Chief Executive Officer Gareth Martin welcomed the funding, which would be used to boost the City’s tourism and ‘knowledge economy’.
“Business events are a forum to collaborate and exchange knowledge by bringing decision makers and experts together,” Mr Martin said.
“This sponsorship continues the long-standing relationship between BE Perth and the City of Perth, as we work together to promote Perth as a premium business event destination to intrastate, interstate and international business visitors.
“While COVID-19 has severely impacted the local business events industry, the long lead times to secure national and international events mean we continue to market Perth and Western Australia as a premium business event location. We are also encouraging local organisations to host business events and support business based in the City of Perth.”
