Designs revealed for $3.7m Daintree tourism hub

Tourism in the Far North’s ancient rainforest will create better housing and employment opportunities through the establishment of a $3.7m tourism hub.

The Queensland Government has announced that a new Daintree cultural and ecotourism centre will be built in partnership with Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation.Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation’s principal ranger Kallum Clarke, chief executive officer Josh Patterson and board director Trinity Clarke. Picture: Brendan Radke

Tourism in the Far North’s ancient rainforest will help First Nations peoples care for country while creating better housing and employment opportunities through the establishment of a $3.7m tourism hub.

But the LNP still hasn’t provided an update on a potentially $300m project to establish Indigenous cultural centres in Cairns and Brisbane, with a long-awaited business case yet to be released.

A digital impression of the Bamanga Muruku culture and tourism hub in the Daintree, set be completed later this year. Picture: Supplied.

The Bamanga Muruku tourism centre in the World Heritage-listed Daintree Rainforest, located around 90km north of Cairns, is set to be completed in December, creating an opportunity for visitors to connect with Eastern Kuku Yalanji peoples’ culture.

The commitment will create five new jobs for the region while encouraging tourists to experience other aspects of the world’s oldest rainforest, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships Minister Fiona Simpson said.

“This is about unlocking the jobs of the future while preserving the stories of the past,” Ms Simpson said. “That’s why this cultural centre is so exciting.”

The new tourism hub in the Daintree will allow traditional owners to share their rich cultural heritage with visitors from around the world. Picture: Supplied.

Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation chief operating officer Kallum Clarke said the land trust aimed to identify employment opportunities and future dwellings for traditional owners, while respecting country.

“One of the biggest challenges for our people that we face is finding housing and employment,” Mr Clarke said.

“We’re trying to both reforest the rainforest while also getting better social and economic outcomes for Eastern Kuku Yalanji peoples.”

The Queensland Government has announced a new Daintree cultural and ecotourism centre will be built with the assistance of Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation. The $3.76 million project will allows tourists and residents alike to learn and connect with the culture of the Eastern Kuku Yalanji peoples. Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation chief executive Josh Patterson, board director Trinity Clarke and principal ranger Kallum Clarke, Member for Barron River Bree James, Queensland Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships Fiona Simpson and Queensland Parks and Wildlife Services rangers Rachael Arnold, Matthew Brien and Lachlan Clark will work collaboratively to deliver the new cultural and ecotourism centre. Picture: Brendan Radke

An enduring custodianship over the land and sea — which also takes in the Great Barrier Reef — was complimented by tourism with Jabalbina rangers also working to restore damaged areas of the rainforest.

“The tourism industry goes hand-in-hand with our everyday life,” Mr Clarke said. “If we get a couple of dollars out of it, well, that’s nice.

“Bringing other people on the journey and mission that we have as Eastern Kuku Yalanji people that we hold in our wawu (spirit), to always look after and protect our country that’s even better.”

Works on the Bamanga Muruku Tourism have already started. Picture: Supplied.

Meanwhile, Ms Simpson stopped short of backing the establishment of an Indigenous cultural centres in Cairns and Brisbane which was explored in a business case launched in 2022.

“There was a business undertaken and finished at the end of the last term of the previous government,” Ms Simpson said.

Jabalbina Yalanji Aboriginal Corporation’s Kallum Clarke will work alongside Lachlan Clark and other members of the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service at the new cultural and ecotourism centre. Picture: Brendan Radke

“That business case is currently before the Arts Minister (John-Paul Langbroek). Some of these projects are worth more than $300m.

“They have to be part of a proper process and consideration as to what is the best way to not only bring these facilities to life but operationally ensure that they bring that economic opportunity.”

A development application has also been submitted with Douglas Shire Council to build accommodation in Cape Tribulation for traditional owners who would work at the hub, Mr Clarke said.

Originally published as Designs revealed for $3.7m Daintree tourism hub