does this spell gd news?
Singapore aims to double tourist arrivals in next decade
By Tan Bee Leng, Channel NewsAsia
SINGAPORE : The Singapore Tourism Board has set bold targets for the next decade.
It aims to triple tourism receipts to S$30 billion, double tourist arrivals to 17 million, and create 100,000 additional jobs in the tourism industry by 2015.
All these will be supported by a S$2 billion Tourism Development Fund.
Opportunities abound from both traditional markets, including the United States and Japan, as well as from high-growth potential markets, such as China and India.
And the STB has every intention of riding on this growth.
Unveiling the board's bold targets at a media conference, Minister for Trade & Industry Lim Hng Kiang says the tourism sector has to remain competitive, so as to continue to be a key contributor to the economy.
The tourism industry contributes at least 3 percent of Singapore's GDP and employs over 150,000 people.
Said Mr Lim, "Tripling tourism receipts and doubling growth in 10 years, doubling visitors in 10 years, means you are growing at a higher rate than the rest of the economy. So we are expecting the tourism sector to pull more than its fair weight in the economy. That is a big challenge."
Under consideration are plans to develop a major convention centre, a world-class entertainment centre and also family-themed attractions.
As for a casino, or an 'integrated entertainment centre', Mr Lim says no decision has been made and the matter is under evaluation.
Mr Lim said, "Let's be quite clear: nobody comes and builds theme resorts (to) lose money. They come here, they invest a billion dollars, they want to make sure that the one billion dollar investment will generate profits for them. If they are prepared to do so with a casino, that's one way in which they can make it viable. So let's be very pragmatic about how we can generate such attractions to Singapore."
To show the government's commitment to grow the tourism sector, a S$2 billion fund has been set up to support infrastructure development and to attract investors.
"There'll be training grants for capability development. We'll look at how to attract investors through a range of ways. Tax breaks, co-investment, cluster development investment -- these are all available to us," Mr Lim said.
"Convince the government that the money will be spent wisely, and if they want more money to spend even more wisely on other projects, we are prepared to consider," he added.
Remaking Orchard Road into one of the world's greatest shopping streets is just one of the ways the Singapore Tourism Board intends to use the S$2 billion fund.
Singapore's tourism industry performed well in 2004, with tourism receipts exceeding the STB's target and tourist arrivals hitting a record high of 8.3 million.
And with the S$2 billion fund as a catalyst, the tourism board believes the targets for 2015 are bold and ambitious, but not impossible. - CNA
rozie...does this spell gd news for us? since u wanna do sumthing with tourism...and i wanna work in a hotel environment...hahaha...ok im just getting bored trying to figure out wat i wrote for sc!
By Tan Bee Leng, Channel NewsAsia
SINGAPORE : The Singapore Tourism Board has set bold targets for the next decade.
It aims to triple tourism receipts to S$30 billion, double tourist arrivals to 17 million, and create 100,000 additional jobs in the tourism industry by 2015.
All these will be supported by a S$2 billion Tourism Development Fund.
Opportunities abound from both traditional markets, including the United States and Japan, as well as from high-growth potential markets, such as China and India.
And the STB has every intention of riding on this growth.
Unveiling the board's bold targets at a media conference, Minister for Trade & Industry Lim Hng Kiang says the tourism sector has to remain competitive, so as to continue to be a key contributor to the economy.
The tourism industry contributes at least 3 percent of Singapore's GDP and employs over 150,000 people.
Said Mr Lim, "Tripling tourism receipts and doubling growth in 10 years, doubling visitors in 10 years, means you are growing at a higher rate than the rest of the economy. So we are expecting the tourism sector to pull more than its fair weight in the economy. That is a big challenge."
Under consideration are plans to develop a major convention centre, a world-class entertainment centre and also family-themed attractions.
As for a casino, or an 'integrated entertainment centre', Mr Lim says no decision has been made and the matter is under evaluation.
Mr Lim said, "Let's be quite clear: nobody comes and builds theme resorts (to) lose money. They come here, they invest a billion dollars, they want to make sure that the one billion dollar investment will generate profits for them. If they are prepared to do so with a casino, that's one way in which they can make it viable. So let's be very pragmatic about how we can generate such attractions to Singapore."
To show the government's commitment to grow the tourism sector, a S$2 billion fund has been set up to support infrastructure development and to attract investors.
"There'll be training grants for capability development. We'll look at how to attract investors through a range of ways. Tax breaks, co-investment, cluster development investment -- these are all available to us," Mr Lim said.
"Convince the government that the money will be spent wisely, and if they want more money to spend even more wisely on other projects, we are prepared to consider," he added.
Remaking Orchard Road into one of the world's greatest shopping streets is just one of the ways the Singapore Tourism Board intends to use the S$2 billion fund.
Singapore's tourism industry performed well in 2004, with tourism receipts exceeding the STB's target and tourist arrivals hitting a record high of 8.3 million.
And with the S$2 billion fund as a catalyst, the tourism board believes the targets for 2015 are bold and ambitious, but not impossible. - CNA
rozie...does this spell gd news for us? since u wanna do sumthing with tourism...and i wanna work in a hotel environment...hahaha...ok im just getting bored trying to figure out wat i wrote for sc!
posted by mE~ at 10:47 pm
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