TWO prominent Penola festivals have received a funding boost from the State Government as part of a package to support regional events across South Australia.
Penola Coonawarra Arts Festival and the Coonawarra Cabernet Celebrations were successful recipients for the funding through the Regional Events and Festivals Program (REFP) and the Community Events Development Fund (CEDF).
“It is fantastic we have received the funding as we run an excellent program with so much to offer,” Penola Coonawarra Arts Festival member Cathy Schmidt said.
“The funding will help advertise the program to broaden our reach.”
Ms Schmidt said the committee always aimed to continue to develop the program and was proud of the many popular events it showcased.
“It is vital to have these events in small country towns and for them to receive support allows them to continue and grow each year,” she said.
Coonawarra Vignerons executive officer Olivia Nunn said funding for the Coonawarra Cabernet Celebrations, which runs during October, would help continue to build the month long-event and attract further visitors.
“This event has been held for over 20 years, growing over the last three years from one weekend to a month-long feature for our region,” Ms Nunn said.
“The funding helps us to promote and attract visitors to the Coonawarra wine region and in turn support the local economy.
“We look forward to releasing the program later this month with many favourite events returning on the traditional weekend starting October 12.”
The REFP will help the delivery and marketing activities of 29 events, with three receiving support for the first time.
Trade, Tourism and Investment Minister David Ridgway said visitors were flocking to South Australia in record numbers and he wanted to see that growth continue.
“Our regions are an important part of the state’s tourism story – these events play a key role in getting people out of the city and spending money on local restaurants, accommodation and attractions,” Mr Ridgway said.
“We are constantly working with the regions to ensure they have the best opportunity and product to attract visitors and in this case a little funding can go a long way to help events to be noticed.”
The 2016/17 Regional Tourism Satellite Accounts shows tourism directly employs 36,000 South Australians and of those 16,000 people were in regional South Australia.
“South Australia has a full and diverse events calendar, amazing natural assets and great food and wine and we want to get more local, interstate and international guests visiting our regions to experience all that our state has to offer,” Mr Ridgway said.
The Community Events Development Fund provides a maximum of $5000 to help organisers with operational, marketing and communications activities.
The funding packages provided $383,000 to support regional events across South Australia.
