A weekly re-cap of the events that have made news in Cairns over the past week.

Monday February 16, 2004 127th Edition

Cairns conference market reaches $82m
Cairns and the surrounding region have attracted $82 million from hosting business conventions in 2003. The number of events shows an increase of 16 per cent or 469 meetings, compared with 2002. Most of these events were held at the Cairns Convention Centre. “Our Cairns and Region Convention Bureau has worked hard to attract events to the Far North, but their efforts are also concentrated on delegates boosting and extending the length of stay for pre and post event leisure touring,” Tourism Tropical North Queensland chief executive officer Bill Calderwood said. In total, the indirect value of these meetings equates to $200 million for the regional economy.

New market in buffalo for Far North
There is potential for a niche market in water buffalo milk and meat products, according to an industry leader. Mitch Humphries whose property at Millaa Millaa hosted the National Buffalo Industry Conference this month says a market exists in the Indian subcontinent, Europe and the US. At present, Mr Humphries is one of two Australian farmers milking water buffalo. The milk is currently used for mozzarella and yoghurt and processed at Mungalli Creek Dairy. “I think it’s going to develop a foothold in niche markets as consumers become more aware. It will also expand into export. A lot of Asian countries have a taste for the meat, while Europeans like the milk and dairy products,” he said.

Cairns region ahead in job growth
The Cairns economy is strong with the region’s high job growth rate the envy of other regions around the country, a new report has revealed. Despite the notion that the Cairns economy is too dependent on tourism, the Bureau of Transport and Regional Economics report shows sound economic diversity in the region due mainly to agriculture and mining. But the real area of growth was in employment with the Focus on Regions: Industry Structure study showing the Far North’s rate outpaced the national average. In the 10 years to 2001, jobs in Cairns grew by 36 per cent compared to only 17 per cent growth nationally.

Cairns aids in West Papua heritage management
Eight representatives from the Lorentz World heritage Area in the Indonesian province of West Papua have begun a three-week training course with Cairns experts to learn about World Heritage management. The Wet Tropics Management Authority and the Rainforest Co-operative Research Centre are conducting the training, which will focus on participation from local communities in planning and management, strengthening local government planning and achieving sustainable economic benefits from the World Heritage Area.