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Johannesburg Mega Events Summit: World Cup Assumptions Flawed Claims
Wednesday, 28 Feb, 2010
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Johannesburg stadium – ready to rock
100 days to World Cup Kick Off: Arrivals Exaggerated: Locals & SMEs excluded: Environment not prioritised
Last week’s Johannesburg Colloquium on Mega-Event Sustainability focused strongly on the methods commonly used to calculate the costs and benefits of mega-events. Somewhat surprisingly, many of the mega-event economic impact figures quoted in literature are based on flawed assumptions, meaning that real return on investment is often much less than published figures. Write Jennifer Seif and Kate Finlay of Fair Trade Tourism South Africa.
The International Research Colloquium on Mega-Event Sustainability was held at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg on 24 February 2010. The Colloquium served as a side event to an International Summit on the same theme, co-hosted by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation and the South African government.
Economists, social scientists and practitioners evaluated the notion of mega event legacy, concluding that intangible legacies are equally if not more valuable than tangible ones. Outcomes like improved civic awareness and investor confidence are “priceless” and, like a brand new public transport system, a product of the mega-event, which helps to explain why cities and countries bid in the first place.
With 100-odd days to kick-off, delegates raised a number of concerns about the upcoming FIFA World Cup to South Africa, namely:
- Projections of international arrivals during the event have been exaggerated;
- Local and African fans may be excluded due to financial considerations and the online ticketing system;
- A fairly narrow definition of legacy has been articulated, focusing primarily on infrastructure development and economic impact;
- Ordinary South Africans’ views of the event are not known and it is too late to apply methodologies used in Germany 2006 and elsewhere to gauge the local population’s “willingness to pay” for the 2010 World Cup;
- Small businesses are being excluded from trading and other opportunities and mega-events may not be suitable platforms for small business development; and
- Social and environmental impacts are not a priority for the South African state, however this is typical of many mega-events. More needs to be done to limit risks and leverage opportunities, particularly in developing countries.
One of the Colloqium’s organizers, Professor Daneel van Lill from the University of Johannesburg, summed up the day’s proceedings when he asked, “With only 100 days to go, what should we be doing to optimize the positive legacies for our country?” A rhetorical question perhaps for South Africa, but a very literal one for the growing numbers of cities and countries looking to ride the mega-event wave.
From Kate Finlay and Jennifer Seif in Johannesburg
Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa www.fairtourismsa.org.za/
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