CHARLOTTETOWN — The Government of P.E.I. and Government of Canada are working with the Tourism Industry Association of Prince Edward Island (TIAPEI) to provide free training programs and workshops to support the province’s tourism operators impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Government of Canada is supporting the project with a non-repayable contribution of $95,000 through the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency’s (ACOA) Business-Development Program, with an additional $95,000 from the Government of P.E.I.
“The past year has devastated tourism and has changed how businesses operate and communicate. We’ve worked with industry to understand the challenges and find opportunities to grow and adapt,” says Corryn Clemence, CEO of TIAPEI. “These training programs will offer industry across the Island the opportunity to enhance their skills and learn new techniques for re-building their business into the future. We are thrilled to be partnering with both the Government of Canada and Government of Prince Edward Island to offer these programs to our industry.”
Over the course of 2021, a variety of free training programs and workshops will be available to operators. These include:
- Social Media – How to Make the Most of your Online Presence
- How to Adapt your Business
- Product Development
- Growing Revenues
- Digitizing your Operations
- Diversity and Inclusion Training
“Throughout the pandemic, we’ve continued to listen and respond to the needs of the tourism industry in any way we can,” says Economic Growth, Tourism and Culture Minister Matthew MacKay. “These training programs were created with direct input from the industry. They shared with us what skills they wanted to learn and build upon and, together with support from ACOA and TIAPEI, we are here to make it happen.”
“Our tourism operators here on the Island have been through a lot this year and I know just how excited they will be to welcome back out-of-province visitors once it’s safe to do so,” says Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Member of Parliament for Cardigan, speaking on behalf of Mélanie Joly, Minister of Economic Development and Official Languages and Minister responsible for ACOA. “It’s going to take everyone pulling in the same direction to make sure they can come through this as best they can and I’m proud that we’re able to support TIAPEI in providing these opportunities for tourism operators.”
Registration for the free training programs and workshops will be available for each session on the TIAPEI website. Registration is currently open for both the beginner and intermediate sessions of the ‘Social Media – How to Make the Most of your Online Presence’ program.
