Rotary meet gives an economic boost to Shepparton The conference is the largest business event the Australian city has held for several years.

The District 9800 Rotary Conference is set to give Greater Shepparton (Victoria, Australia) a strong economic boost as more than 700 Rotarians converge on the region.
The conference is the largest business event Shepparton has held for several years and Greater Shepparton City Council has predicted a $669800 economic benefit for the region.
Conference chair Kevin Love said Rotary was thrilled to be holding the conference in Shepparton. “We deliberately chose to go to regional Victoria,” he said.
“It was the welcome we received from Shepparton that made us go to Shepparton.” The overall theme of the conference is ‘Connecting Communities — Serving Humanity’. It begins on March 30 (Thursday) and ends on April 1 (Saturday).
The conference includes a range of guest speakers, such as Adam Furphy of J Furphy and Sons and Andrew Fairley of the Fairley Foundation. Love said the conference would include many Melbourne-based Rotary clubs that were eager to support regional Victoria.
To kick-start the event, South Shepparton Rotary Club will host a welcome dinner for District 9800 members on Thursday night.
South Shepparton Rotary Club president David Earle said the club was looking forward to welcoming District 9800 and had organised a Taste of Harmony dinner that demonstrated how culturally diverse the region was.
The meal will include tasting platters with samosa, meatballs with bolognaise sauce, and gozleme.
“It will be a good welcome to Shepparton and set the mood for the conference,” Earle said. Greater Shepparton City Council Mayor Dinny Adem said by hosting the event, Shepparton’s reputation as a leading events destination was reinforced.
“We are delighted to be hosting and supporting this significant conference in Greater Shepparton,” he said.
“This is one of the biggest conferences held in our region over the last decade and will see a boom for local businesses as delegates spend up big on accommodation, entertainment, dining, retail and visiting the many great tourism attractions we have in the region.”