BECA to focus on events recovery plan as key engagement with government

Hand of a trainer addressing group of females sitting in a conference hall. Female hand against defocused group of women attending seminar.

The Business Events Council of Australia (BECA) has updated the industry on its priorities in combating the impacts of coronavirus (COVID-19).

The BECA board has agreed on the development of a ‘Business Events Response and Recovery Plan’ as its key piece for engagement with government, which will contain three phases: immediate needs, mid-term sustainment and recovery.

It follows revelations from the council on the impacts of the pandemic, which has halted events of all scales across the country.

According to the council, the business events industry is losing a staggering $2.5 billion per month.

The first phase is currently under development, BECA explained, with the goal of delivering a draft to the government “as quickly as possible”.

This work is underpinned by an Ernst and Young update to the sector stats and collation and analysis of the industry-wide survey that was conducted this week.

“New stimulus and support measures are announced regularly and … the federal government has confirmed it is looking at a ‘hibernation’ package that will essentially allow businesses to pause, be preserved and supported through the crisis and then be ready to surge again once the crisis subsides,” BECA chair Dr Vanessa Findlay said in a statement.

To assist event organisers and members of the MICE industry, BECA has also put together a helpful coronavirus information resource, complete with an overview of the federal government’s stimulus and support measures.

This will be regularly reviewed with new information and extended to also cover other useful resources for business events businesses.

Featured image: iStock.com/izusek

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