Facts and Figures about WYD08

Sydney will host the 23rd World Youth Day - the largest youth event in the world - from 15 - 20 July 2008.
Sydney has successfully hosted other large-scale events including the 2003 Rugby World Cup and the 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Some World Youth Day 2008 events are expected to attract up to 500,000 people who are either registered pilgrims or members of the public who want to participate in the event.
There will be 125,000 registered pilgrims from overseas and a further 100,000 from all parts of Australia - that's more visitors than the 2000 Olympics.
About 8,000 volunteers will assist WYD 2008 (the Catholic Church's body organising the event), while around 800 volunteers will assist the NSW Government's World Youth Day Coordination Authority.
In November 2007, the NSW Government enacted legislation to create the World Youth Day Coordination Authority (WYDCA), to plan, coordinate and provide government services for the event - and ensure public safety and security, as well as the provision of public transport. Roy Wakelin-King is the CEO.
The NSW Department of State & Regional Development estimates that the gross value-add to the NSW ecomony of World Youth Day will be in the order of $150 million.
The Sydney Chamber of Commerce's independent experts estimate that the economic benefits will be around $231 million.
State revenue from GST and other taxes is expected to be between $8 - 10 million.
We also expect that a proportion of pilgrims will want to return to Australia as tourists or recommend to others that they visit. The tourism industry is worth $23 billion to the NSW economy.

New South Wales Government