The City announced this week that it will be renewing its highly successful agreement with its destination marketing partner, Cape Town Tourism (CTT), for a further three years.
‘Having seen first-hand the value tourism creates for local communities while celebrating culture and natural beauty, I am deeply passionate about this industry. CTT’s past, current and planned performance bears testimony to their worth and commitment to amplifying the businesses which showcase Cape Town’s diverse offering to visitors,’ said Alderman James Vos, Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Growth.
CTT’s contribution to the local industry has been made evident through numerous accolades and growth of the market, and their platform as a membership organisation enabled the City to act swiftly and effectively to combat the fall-out of the tourism and hospitality sector.
Through sustained and innovative initiatives, CTT and the City have helped to revive the sector from the pandemic-induced lows. These include Find Your Freedom, an interactive travel experience that allows users to virtually explore the Mother City. They have also launched the Neighbourhood Experience Development training manual to guide SMMEs in growing their businesses and cultural understandings.
‘The results speak for themselves: Last month, Cape Town International Airport processed up to 30 663 passengers in a day. In May, domestic and international passenger numbers recovered to almost 80% of that in the same month in 2019,’ he said.
Alderman Vos said, looking ahead, the key areas of focus of the joint accelerated growth agenda are
- enhancing the visitor experience
- exploring domestic, continental and untapped markets
- and embedding responsible tourism principles (RT) in tourism operations
This is especially in light of the recent World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) Economic Impact Report which showed that South Africa’s tourism sector is forecasted to grow at an average rate of 7,6% annually over the next decade and by 2032, the sectoral contribution to GDP could hit more than R554,6 billion. The report further found that the sector will create more than 800 000 jobs over the next 10 years.
‘We have powerful synergies and shared goals with the City that make us natural partners. Both of our entities have the overarching purpose to improve the lives of all Capetonians through tourism. We are passionate about community development and aim to shine a spotlight on our city in a way that has long-lasting benefits for our people. As we enter this post-pandemic chapter, our mission is to work together to hasten economic recovery and ensure optimal tourism readiness,’ said Enver Duminy, the CEO of Cape Town Tourism.
Cape Town Tourism Board Chairperson, Brett Hendricks stressed the idea of impact: ‘A focus for us and the City is to use tourism to make a difference to the Cape’s SMME sector. We know our small businesses are key to job creation and the sustained upliftment of some of our most vulnerable communities. We want to work with these SMMEs to spotlight their ventures and drive footfall to the areas in which they operate.’
With the incorporation of community-based support, environmentally friendly practices, and broadening the sector’s contributions to local economic growth and job creation, Alderman Vos said the agreement gives rise to the future fit initiatives that can shorten the unemployment queue and realise more opportunities for more Capetonians.