By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter WINDSPEAKER.COM

The good news is that there is growing demand for Indigenous tourism across Canada.

But the not-so-good news is the industry is still falling short of post-COVID recovery goals according to a report released on Jan. 23 by the Conference Board of Canada (CBOC) and the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC).

乌鸦传媒淚 was expecting it to be stronger,乌鸦传媒� Keith Henry, who serves as the ITAC president and CEO, said of the report research that was delivered, adding he was disappointed with the data compiled.

Henry though was not shocked to see the non-Indigenous tourism industry is faring better across the country.

乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檓 not surprised by the outcome because I know there has been limited support for actual Indigenous marketing and Indigenous tourism support,乌鸦传媒� he said.

There乌鸦传媒檚 no denying Indigenous tourism is capable of playing a significant role in the country乌鸦传媒檚 economy.

According to the just-released report, Indigenous tourism in 2023 directly contributed $1.6 billion to Canada乌鸦传媒檚 Gross Domestic Product (GDP). That was a decrease of 10 per cent compared to 2019, the year before the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

When adjusted for inflation, the report said the GDP decrease was almost 24 per cent.

Henry said Indigenous tourism operators have been pleading with government officials and the private sector for much needed financial assistance for years.

乌鸦传媒淭he lack of a real focus and commitment to Indigenous tourism has contributed to this outcome,乌鸦传媒� Henry said. 乌鸦传媒淲e feel that乌鸦传媒檚 a missed opportunity for the industry.乌鸦传媒�

Henry doesn乌鸦传媒檛 foresee positive changes in the near future.

乌鸦传媒淚 don乌鸦传媒檛 think Canada is going to put any money into it any time soon,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淚 haven乌鸦传媒檛 seen any major investments for Indigenous tourism for the last few years. I乌鸦传媒檝e been on record in the media talking the last few years. And people thought I didn乌鸦传媒檛 make any political friends. But the truth was my job was to advocate for the needs of our industry.乌鸦传媒�

Henry added talk can indeed be cheap, if not followed through with action.

乌鸦传媒淭here乌鸦传媒檚 a real disconnect between writing us in public statements and policy and then not really investing in it,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淎nd so, I don乌鸦传媒檛 see any major investments on the horizon from Canada. And any real investments or support coming from the private sector.乌鸦传媒�

A report on the state of the Indigenous tourism industry in Canada was first released in 2015.

乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檙e back now to 2014 levels,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 unfortunate because the regular industry has rebounded (from the pandemic) and actually surpassed 2019 levels. We乌鸦传媒檙e still below 2019 levels. And you乌鸦传媒檝e got to ask why.

乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 not that visitor demand is not there. There is a lack of support from marketing and infrastructure to continue to help consumers find our experiences and our product. We have to speak loudly about that because those are systemic challenges we乌鸦传媒檝e got.乌鸦传媒�

Henry also said he is disappointed that support has not materialized as anticipated.

乌鸦传媒淧artners that we were hoping would be there and invest more strategically in the ways that we set through Indigenous-led strategy haven乌鸦传媒檛 done that,乌鸦传媒� he said. 乌鸦传媒淎nd my worry is that without those commitments in the near future, which we don乌鸦传媒檛 have, how is Indigenous tourism going to resolve those issues. I see the gap widening, not getting better.

乌鸦传媒淚t will still grow. But it will grow at a very, very nominal rate versus what it could grow had we been meeting the true visitor demand. And we can乌鸦传媒檛 do that with the resources and the investments that we see today.乌鸦传媒�

A positive note from the report, however, indicated that there were more than 2,750 entrepreneurs and organization that were part of the country乌鸦传媒檚 Indigenous tourism sector in 2023.

That figure has dramatically risen from nearly 1,900 entrepreneurs/organization two years earlier.

Henry attributes the increase to the work done by ITAC and reps from Indigenous provincial/territorial tourism organizations that have raised awareness about the importance of Indigenous tourism.

乌鸦传媒淭hat乌鸦传媒檚 the problem now,乌鸦传媒� Henry said. 乌鸦传媒淲e乌鸦传媒檝e raised such strong support and expectations. And we乌鸦传媒檝e seen a lot of new artists and smaller businesses come online and more festivals and events. There乌鸦传媒檚 a number of new businesses that have formed in the last five, six, seven years.乌鸦传媒�

But without some external funding, getting word out about these Indigenous business operators has proved challenging.

乌鸦传媒淲e always thought we were going to have stable, predictable resources,乌鸦传媒� Henry said. 乌鸦传媒淏ut we乌鸦传媒檝e just never been able to achieve that.乌鸦传媒�