The Provincial and Territorial Tourism Satellite Accounts for Canada, 1996 - ARCHIVED

The measurement of the economic impact of tourism has attracted increasing world-wide interest in the past few years. The development of a national Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) in Canada (1994), as well as a set of current quarterly indicators (1996), was a result of a demand for this information. Statistics Canada has now taken the analysis of tourism a step further with the development of the Provincial and Territorial Tourism Satellite Accounts (PTTSA).

The development of these accounts has come primarily at the request of the tourism community in Canada. The new regional accounts increase the analytical capability and further the understanding of tourism across Canada. The PTTSA are designed to measure the importance of tourism in terms of expenditures, gross domestic product (GDP) and employment. The concepts and methods used in the PTTSA generally follow the set of international TSA guidelines adopted by the United Nations Statistical Commission and strictly adhere to the principles of the System of National Accounts (SNA).

As separate or satellite accounts, the PTTSA explicitly define the tourism industry within the national accounts statistical system and measure its economic contribution to the economy. With their foundation in the framework of the Canadian SNA, the PTTSA allow for a comparison of tourism with other industries within a province or territory, as well as showing the relative importance of tourism among provinces and territories. A tourism satellite account also provides the statistical basis for the development of tourism impact models. Thus, the PTTSA can contribute to government policy-making and business decisions concerning tourism.

This document discusses the concepts and definitions used, and it highlights the results of the PTTSA by region for the reference year 1996. The appendices include an overview of the methodology and data sources; the detailed tables showing tourism expenditures and GDP, as well as employment for each region; a list of tourism industries and commodities; and a glossary.