Federal Government announces $50 million worth of funding to support Business Events restart

The business events community has been thrown a lifeline by the Federal Government in the form of a $50 million support package that will position the industry to rebound as market conditions approve.

Under the new Australian Business Events Grants Program, approved events, including meetings conventions, incentives and exhibitions, will be able to apply for upfront grants to cover up to 50 per cent of their costs (between $10,000 and $250,000). This initiative is part of the Morrison-McCormack Government’s $1 billion COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Fund, which supports sectors severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Business Events Council of Australia (BECA) chair Dr Vanessa Findlay said the grant will “rebuild business confidence” and “kickstart momentum across the entire business events supply chain for meetings, conventions, incentives and exhibitions”.

“BECA’s goal is to not only support the business events industry itself but to also maximise the contribution business events make to the recovery of the wider economy. This support package will be pivotal to that.”

“Our goal is to get money flowing throughout the supply chain as soon as possible.”

Business Events Geelong Bureau Manager Mark Day joined industry colleagues in applauding the support package, adding that it was a ‘great start to mending the damage that the pandemic wreaked on the industry’.

“Without a doubt, our industry was one of the hardest hit by COVID-19 and I feel that this newly established grants program will go a long way in helping our industry – which at its peak contributed $35 billion to the economy per annum – get back on its feet.”

By March this year, 96% of business events scheduled for 2020 in Australia had been cancelled or postponed. Close collaboration with Government led to this announcement as BECA’s Recovery and Rebound Framework highlighted the devastating impact of COVID-19 on the sector and the need for funding to drive business confidence.

BECA will now lead the industry’s work with Government on the design and implementation of the Australian Business Events Grants Program.

Click here to download BECA’s Recovery Framework.