Foreign students a boon

The value of international students to Western Bay's economy grew by 24 per cent last year to reach $30 million, with Education Tauranga aiming to boost returns to $35 million by 2017.

It was positioning Tauranga and the rest of the Western Bay as a "hub for innovation-led education".

Education Tauranga is the local branch of a national body that markets New Zealand as an education destination to overseas countries.