Annual report 2003 - 2004
Department of the Chief Minister
Dept. of the Chief Minister annual report; Department of the Chief Minister annual report; Reports; PublicationNT
2004
Made available via the Publications (Legal Deposit) Act 2004 (NT).
Date:2004
English
Northern Territory. Dept. of the Chief Minister -- Periodicals; Executive departments -- Northern Territory -- Periodicals
Dept. of the Chief Minister
Darwin
Check within Publication or with content Publisher.
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/231446
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/668403
7ANNUAL REPORT 2003 - 2004 A B O U T O U R D EPA R TM EN T CHIEF EXECUTIVES OVERVIEW This has been a year of progress and achievement for the Department and our partners across the public service and in the private and community sector. The completion of the AustralAsia Railway late in 2003 and the celebrations to welcome the first freight train in January 2004 and the first Ghan passenger train in February 2004 were landmark events for the Territory, the culmination of more than a decade of work by hundreds of Territorians in the public and private sectors. The completion of the railway opens the AustralAsia Trade Route to the world, providing the base infrastructure for the private sector to make the most of the opportunities the Territory has to offer. The decision by Swire Shipping to begin a new Darwin-Singapore service was a welcome initiative. The creation of opportunities has been a theme of developments during this year. In August 2003, the Chief Minister announced the Darwin City Waterfront Project to revitalise part of Darwins foreshore, incorporating a world-class 1500 seat, 4000m2 convention centre. The Convention and Exhibition Centre will not only attract thousands of visitors to conventions meaning higher occupancy rates for hotels and restaurants but will create a new all year round destination for Territorians. On 19 December, three proponents were short listed for the project. The preferred developer is expected to be announced in September 2004 and a tight timeframe is in place to ensure construction commences on site in early 2005. As the Territory develops its capacity, telling the rest of the world about what we have to offer is becoming increasingly more important. With representation from the business sector, the Chief Minister led a number of investment missions to Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide as well as a more focused trade mission to Hong Kong and mainland China. All of the investment missions included a series of industry association breakfasts, face-to-face meetings, boardroom luncheons and industry gatherings targeted at financiers, public private investors, superannuation funds, economists, major public companies and tourism operators. The missions were complemented by multimedia advertising. Follow-up research showed a significant increase in awareness of the Northern Territory as a population and investment destination. As part of its overall investment attraction strategy, the Department has put considerable effort into attracting major conferences to the Territory. Research shows that people who have experienced the Territory are more likely to think positively about it as an investment destination. The Global Freight Connect 2004 Conference in February promoted the AustralAsian Trade Route and brought together some of the biggest names in the Australian and regional trade, freight and transport sectors, including representatives from throughout Asia.