ARCHIVED - Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency - Supplementary Tables

Name of Horizontal Initiative:
Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership (ACTP)

Name of Lead Department:
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA)

Lead Department Program Activity:
Community Development

Start Date:
April 1, 2009

End Date:
March 31, 2012

Total Federal Funding Allocation (from start date to end date):
$9,975,000

Description of the Horizontal Initiative (including funding agreement):
The ACTP is a nine-member, pan-Atlantic marketing consortium comprising ACOA, the four provincial tourism industry associations, and the provincial departments responsible for tourism in Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. The ACTP is dedicated to promoting Atlantic Canada as a leading vacation destination in key American, European and Pacific markets.

The 2009-12 ACTP is a $19.95-million agreement that supports:

• fully integrated consumer, trade and media relations marketing strategies based on sound market research, economies of scale and commonality;
• funding that is incremental to provincial marketing budgets;
• the preservation of provincial brand equity;
• marketing activities dictated by the marketplace;
• clear and responsive measurement systems that benefit all four Atlantic provinces; and
• end-of-agreement project evaluations.

Additional information can be found on the ACTP website.

A memorandum of understanding for the renewal of the ACTP was signed on April 1, 2009. This initiative directly supports the Agency’s strategic outcome.

Shared Outcomes:
The goal of the ACTP exemplifies the Agency’s priority to increase revenues, profits, investments and wages. It aims to:

• increase Atlantic Canada’s competitiveness in targeted markets;
• promote regional co-operation (e.g. federal, provincial, industry);
• promote incremental marketing activities;
• achieve economies of scale in marketing;
• raise awareness of Atlantic Canada as a “top-of-mind” destination; and
• increase tourism arrivals and tourism revenues for the four Atlantic provinces.

The 2009-12 ACTP is expected to generate $10 in incremental economic activity for every $1 invested in marketing. The three-year revenue target (2009-10 through 2011-12) is $190 million in incremental revenues for small and medium-sized tourism enterprises in Atlantic Canada.

Governance Structure:
The activities of the ACTP are managed by a ten-person management committee, consisting of:

• the ACOA vice-president responsible for tourism;
• the ACOA director general of Tourism Atlantic;
• the four provincial deputy ministers responsible for tourism; and
• the presidents of the four provincial tourism industry associations (or their permanent designates).

Decisions taken by this management committee require a consensus of members. Six members constitute a quorum, provided all four provinces are represented by both government and industry present, as well as ACOA. A representative of the Canadian Tourism Commission sits as an ex officio member of the management committee.

The management committee is responsible for the administration and management of the agreement, allocation of annual budgets on a per-market basis, approval of the program’s annual work plans and budgets, and evaluations of its activities. It oversees the work of a marketing committee, develops and oversees a communications policy, and provides program interpretation and dispute resolution.

Performance Highlights:
During fiscal year 2010-11, the ACTP generated $45.3 million in export revenues for small and medium-sized tourism enterprises in Atlantic Canada. With a return on investment (ROI) of $10.86 for every $1.00 invested in marketing, the partnership surpassed its ROI target of 10 to 1. The ACTP also generated $2.7 million in media buying efficiencies and leveraged $456,072 from its joint marketing agreement with tour operators based in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Federal Partner	Federal Partner Program Activity	Name of Program for Federal Partner	Total Allocation (from Start to End Date)	2010-11 ($ millions)
				Planned Spending	Actual Spending	Expected Results	Results Achieved
ACOA	Community Development	Atlantic Canada Tourism Partnership	$9.975 million	3.325	3.591	Export revenues:  55.2	45.3

Comments on Variances:
Spending - The variance in planned spending is due to reduced advertising expenditures of $0.266 million in fiscal year 2009-10 following a cautious approach to the ACTP’s developmental markets in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. This amount was reallocated to fiscal year 2010-11, increasing ACOA’s investment from $3.325 million to $3.591 million.

Results - The variance of $9.9 million less revenues generated by the ACTP in 2010-11 was the result of reduced advertising expenditures, a weak U.S. economy and the ACTP’s new focus on development markets in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States.

Results to be achieved by non-federal partners:
The ACTP enables industry and the four Atlantic provincial governments to pool their resources in order to increase their visibility in priority markets; in most cases, this exposure would not be accessible to them individually. The ACTP facilitates the following: relationship building and a collaborative partnership with the Canadian Tourism Commission; joint marketing partnerships with tour wholesalers/operators; marketing efficiencies (e.g. media buys, media relations); research efficiencies that support marketing strategies and tactics; familiarization tours that provide travel writers and tour operators with first-hand information on (and exposure to) the region’s tourism assets; and support to Atlantic Canada Showcase, a venue that allows small and medium-sized enterprises in the tourism industry to interact with tour wholesalers and tour operators.

Contact information:
Rob McCloskey
Director General, Tourism Atlantic
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
P.O. Box 40
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
C1A 7K2
Telephone: 902-626-2479
E-mail: Rob.McCloskey@acoa-apeca.gc.ca

Name of Horizontal Initiative:
International Business Development Agreement (IBDA)

Name of Lead Department:
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA)

Lead Department Program Activity:
Enterprise Development (program sub-activity: Trade)

Start Date:
April 1, 2005

End Date:
March 31, 2011

Total Federal Funding Allocation (from start date to end date):
$8.4 million

Description of the Horizontal Initiative (including funding agreement):
In May 1994, ACOA entered into an agreement (Canada–Atlantic Provinces Agreement on International Business Development) with the four Atlantic Provinces, Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, and Industry Canada to “undertake specific measures to optimize regional coordination on a pan-Atlantic scale and combine limited resources to coordinate trade-related activities.” ¹  With an initial launch in 1994, the agreement was extended in 1997, 2000, 2005 and 2010, for a total investment of $25 million over the course of 17 years. Funding is cost-shared 70-30 between the federal and provincial governments.

In April 2011, ACOA renewed the agreement with its partners for another five years (2011-16) with a budget of $10 million ($7 million ACOA, $3 million provinces). The commitment to this IBDA, with the increased funding allocation, attests to both the agreement’s positive results and its significance for the future of the region’s international business development.

More information can be found on the IBDA website.

Shared Outcomes:
The shared outcomes for the IBDA partners support ACOA’s Trade program sub-activity and are (1) increased number of new exporters, (2) existing exporters reporting sales to new markets, and (3) existing exporters reporting increased sales to existing markets.

Between 2005 and 2010, the Agency and its partners administered over 90 projects. Clients surveyed to date have reported the following results: 23 companies started exporting; 135 exporters increased sales in existing markets; and 107 exporters expanded into new markets.

Governance Structure:
ACOA is the lead organization for this initiative and houses the secretariat responsible for administering the agreement. A management committee comprised of a representative from each of the partners is responsible for the planning and management of the agreement’s strategic elements and the evaluation of projects.

Partners

   Federal government (70% funding)

• ACOA (lead department)
• Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (non-funding partner)
• Industry Canada (non-funding partner)

   Provincial governments (30% funding)

• Business New Brunswick
• Nova Scotia Business Inc.
• Newfoundland and Labrador Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development
• Prince Edward Island Department of Innovation and Advanced Learning

Performance Highlights:
During 2010-11, the Agency and its partners approved 16 projects. The coordination of the projects on a pan-Atlantic basis provided an opportunity to streamline the funding and application approach and to simplify the administration of the projects by consolidating all the services in one office and creating a central point of control. A client survey demonstrates that 2 companies began exporting, 28 exporters increased their exporter sales in existing markets, and 26 exporters expanded into new markets.

Federal Partner	Federal Partner Program Activity	Name of Program for Federal Partner	Total Allocation (from Start to End Date)	2010-11 ($ millions)
				Planned Spending	Actual Spending	Expected Results	Results Achieved
ACOA	Enterprise Development	International Business Development Agreement	$8.4 million	1.4	0.6	New exporters: 8	2
						Existing exporters reporting sales to new markets: 20	26
						Companies reporting increased sales to existing markets: 30	28

Comments on Variances:
Spending - In addition to not having received the number of proposals projected, claims for eight projects, valued at $400,000, were not paid before April 1, 2011.

Results - Proposals received over the reporting period were mostly from existing exporters rather than non-exporters.

Results to be achieved by non-federal partners:
Same as federal partners.

Contact information:
Michel Têtu
Director General, Trade and Investment
Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency
P.O. Box 6051
Moncton, New Brunswick
E1C 9J8
Telephone: 506-851-6496
E-mail: Michel.Tetu@acoa-apeca.gc.ca