Monday, May 7, 2001

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Memramcook, New Brunswick - The Honourable Robert Thibault, Minister of State for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) and Mr. Euclide Chiasson, President of the société nationale de l'acadie (SNA) announced today that significant advances have been made on the development and promotion of a fully diversified Acadian tourism product in Atlantic Canada.

Details of an initiative to develop a tourism product under the common brand name of L'Acadie were presented. It is designed to provide specialized support such as mentoring, assistance in market readiness, and direct marketing activities. This initiative has been directed by an interim committee of the SNA called La Commission du tourisme acadien du Canada atlantique (CTACA), made up of industry stakeholders. The SNA is a regional organization that represents the Acadian population both culturally and economically. The interim CATCA committee will be replaced by a formal commission at their founding meeting May 7 and 8.

"ACOA is very pleased to support this important initiative to unite Acadian attractions and destination marketing organizations under the umbrella of L'Acadie. Together, they will work to create a tourism experience that cannot be found anywhere else in the world, based on the theme of Acadia," stated Minister Thibault. "The objective is to develop the significant potential that tourism offers Acadian communities for diversifying their economies and strengthening awareness of cultural heritage."

Mr. Chiasson thanked the tourism industry stakeholders who have believed in the project from the start. He pointed out that "once the study on the strategy for the Acadian tourism product in Atlantic Canada was tabled in 1998, the SNA struck an interim committee which has devoted its time and energy for two years now to Acadian tourism product marketing and development strategies. The members of the interim committee have accomplished a colossal task, and there would have been no launch today without their determination."

The Acadian tourism product brand is the same in English and French. It was chosen to underscore the fact that L'Acadie offers unique cultural experiences in a warm and entertaining atmosphere. The CTACA intends to showcase L'Acadie through a strong promotional campaign that carefully targets the distinctly different markets of Atlantic Canada, Quebec and New England, and complements the efforts being made by the governments of the Atlantic Provinces.

Based on the results of in-depth marketing studies, an appropriate slogan has been chosen for each different market segment. For Quebec, the slogan is "Visage francophone du Canada atlantique"; for Atlantic Canada's Francophones, it's "Accueuillante depuis 400 ans"; for the region's Anglophones, "Four centuries of French hospitality"; and for New England, "Atlantic Canada's Cajun Connection".

Mr. Jean-Yves Thériault, Chair of the interim committee, underlined the fact that "the Commission du tourisme acadien du Canada atlantique is the result of the untiring efforts of Acadian tourism operators to achieve their full potential, not only in terms of developing their individual products but also in terms of marketing Atlantic Canada's Acadian regions as an unrivalled tourism destination." He added that significant support from CTACA's partners has helped to provide Acadian tourism operators with a real voice.

L'Acadie is a joint initiative of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Prince Edward Island, Parks Canada, the Fédération des francophones de Terre-Neuve et du Labrador, and the Canadian Tourism Commission. ACOA is contributing $645,000 to develop and implement the strategy, and a total of $480,000 has been committed by the remaining partners. L'Acadie will be officially launched at a conference on the development of Acadian tourism product, May 7 and 8 at Université Sainte-Anne.

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For more information, please contact 
Jennifer Savoy
Press Secretary
Office of the Hon. Robert Thibault
(613) 941-7291

Guy Duguay
Coordinator
Commission du tourisme acadien du Canada atlantique
(506) 854-7025.

Giselle Goguen
Hawk Communications
(506) 877-1400

Catherine MacInnis-Gordon
ACOA PEI and Tourism
(902) 368-0502