South Africa Tourism hosts sustainable tourism seminar

On 14 January at a seminar held in London, South African Tourism hosted a number of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) which are designed to develop and encourage the growth of sustainable tourism in South Africa.

Selected for their innovation and sound business practices, the six emerging tourism entrepreneurs, sponsored by South African Tourism and the Western Cape Tourism Board, have been enabled to ‘workshop’ their products and services with the UK’s leading tour operators, with a view to tailoring them to the specific needs of the international market.

General Manager South African Tourism United Kingdom, Mr Willem Eksteen, said the purpose of the workshop was to equip the participating entrepreneurs with the knowledge and tools needed to add value to their products and to successfully market their offerings to an international audience, in particular the UK market.

Tourism has been identified by the government as one of the country’s top five leading economic growth industries.

“Tourism contributes significantly to South Africa’s economy, and in an industry traditionally dominated by big business, the emergence of SMMEs plays a vital role in job creation and the achievement of a more equitable distribution of income. In fact, for every eight visitors to South Africa, one job is created,” Mr Eksteen said.

“It is one of our primary objectives to make tourism the leading economic sector in South Africa through the creation of sustainable jobs and the empowerment of local communities. Initiatives like the workshop and the annual Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year Awards (ETEYA) are just two of the ways we are encouraging and supporting the growth of sustainable tourism in South Africa.”

In recognition of the important work it is doing with SMMEs in the tourism industry, the Western Cape Tourism Board recently received a Commendation Award at the 2002 Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO) Responsible Tourism Awards. Independently judged, the awards celebrate the responsible tourism initiatives and achievements of AITO members, their suppliers and destinations.

“It is a great honour for the Western Cape Tourism Board to have received a Commendation Award in the AITO Destination of the Year category in recognition of their work with SMMEs in the Western Cape,” Mr Eksteen said.

“Making a difference in the community is reward enough, but awards like these go a long way towards inspiring others to participate in the empowerment of previously disadvantaged communities in South Africa.”

South Africa Tourism is hoping that Indaba 2003, Africa’s largest annual travel and tourism show – which attracted a threefold increase in SMME exhibitors in 2002 – will provide another valuable opportunity for South Africa’s emergent tourism newcomers to showcase their products and services to the 1600 international delegates expected to attend the show in Durban in May.

For further enquiries contact:
Rosie Wilkins:
South African Tourism
6 Alt Grove
Wimbledon
SW19 4DZ
United Kingdom.
Telephone + 44 (0) 208 971 9352
Email: [email protected]