Research has found that the economic benefits of hosting the G8 are much greater for smaller communities than capital cities.

Irish tourism chiefs are hoping to capitalise on the international media spotlight being shone on Co. Fermanagh today as the 2-day G8 event gets underway.

Tourism Ireland says it's an unprecedented opportunity to showcase the island of Ireland to potential holidaymakers around the world. They're targeting Great Britain as well other key markets overseas.

The study from the G8 Research Group at the University of Toronto found that the economic benefits of a recent G8 summit in Ontario is estimated to have been in the region of €220-million.

Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, says "The internatiional media profile accompanying the G8 is enormous and the ensuing publicity will raise the profile of the destination to help us achieve our goal of boosting visitor numbers to the island of Ireland. Tourism Ireland is focused on exploiting the tourism ptoential offered by the G8 to the fullest extent possible."