South Pacific Tourism Organisation

south-pacific.travel (South Pacific Tourism Organization) is the mandated inter-governmental body for the tourism sector in the South Pacific. It markets and develops Tourism in the South Pacific. [http://www.south-pacific.travel/blog]

Membership

south-pacific.travel members include the Pacific Island nations of the Cook Islands (Cooks), Fiji, Kiribati, New Caledonia, Niue, Samoa, Solomons, Tahiti (French Polynesia), Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea (PNG). China is also a country member of SPTO.

Organization

SPTO’s supreme governing body is the Council of Tourism Ministers that meets annually. The Council's primary functions include monitoring and reviewing SPTO’s policies, strategies, work programmes and budgets. It is also responsible for securing funding for SPTO’s activities.

A Board of Directors that meets about three times annually is responsible for the general administration of SPTO’s operational and financial policies. The Board has one representative from each of the member countries and six from the Tourism Industry Members (TIMs). The Board implements the policies approved by the Council of Ministers. A Chief Executive, appointed by the Board, carries out the day-to-day administrative functions of SPTO. He is supported by a staff of 12.

Funding

SPTO is funded by
#annual contributions from member countries,
#donor agency funding for specific projects and
#private sector member fees.

ervices

SPTO offers a range of services to its members which cover the following areas:

Research

* Regional Statistics Analysis
* NTO Bi Annual Benchmarking Survey
* Quarterly Market Intelligence Summary
* Market Intelligence Reports
* Membership Weekly Newsletter

Marketing

* Internet marketing and web development
* Overseas Representation
* Travel Show/Road Show Facilitation
* Regional Collateral Material including
* Regional Tourism Magazine
* Product Listing
* Members Forum

Membership Services

* Member Discounts
* Photo Library
* Banner Advertising
* Database Marketing
* Regional Tourism Conference

Policy, Planning and HRD Division

* Training Facilitation and Implementation
* Industry and stakeholder workshops
* Bi-annaul Regional Tourism Conference
* Regional Tourism Policy and Planning
* Technical Assistance
* Project Management/Implementation Services
* Consultancy Database
* South Pacific Tourism Investment Guide

References