Australia's visitor economy plays a critical role in driving our economy, wellbeing, and sense of national identity. It generates jobs, trade, investment, and creates opportunities in cities, and regions like the one I live in in Cairns Far North Queensland.
Australia's tourism policy is guided by THRIVE 2030, a national strategy for the long term sustainable growth of the visitor economy. It has a target of growing the visitor economy expenditure by $230 billion by 2030, with 40% of the spend in Australia's regional areas.
Now, I want to talk about sustainable tourism and regional diversification today in two different ways.
Firstly, to explain a little bit about the way sustainable tourism is looked at by our government and in the tourism industry itself. Australia recognises that we need to balanced approach to growth and it’s required that we weigh up the economic, social and environmental issues to sustain a positive visitor experience and remain internationally competitive. As part of the strategy, THRIVE 2030, the Australian government, in partnership with Australian states and territories, released the national sustainability framework for the visitor economy. The framework provided a nationally agreed understanding of the sustainable tourism based on four really important pillars. Sustainable management, environmental climate action, respecting local cultures and creating positive social impact.
And you asked for examples, and I can give you one. In my hometown in Cairns, where the Great Barrier Reef is, we're working hand in hand with tourism operators who are delivering Reef protection initiatives. This is just one of the ways that we're reaching one of the key drivers of the Japanese market, and others, by providing sustainable tourism.
Now, in terms of regional tourism or the regionalisation of tourism, we see this in two ways in Australia. Dispersing our visitors out to regional parts of Australia, and 51% of jobs in tourism are actually in regional areas.
But I want to talk about this from a more regional point of view, and I want to recognise the work that UN Tourism does to support small island states or as they prefer to be known in the Pacific big ocean states. Tourism is an important enabler in the Pacific to grow economies sustainably, to deliver gender equality goals, and to protect nature. But we know that tourism sites in the Pacific and in Australia are under threat from climate change. And that's why our government has announced ambitious and achievable targets.
Ultimately, sustainable tourism is important not just to keep those sites protected, but for the ultimate growth of our industry as well.
That's why our government is delivering the THRIVE 2030 strategy, and I can't wait to talk about that more today.