September 17, 2003
By Lucille Davie
THE establishment of tourism as a key economic sector for Johannesburg is the key goal of the Johannesburg Tourism Company, officially launched by Executive Mayor Amos Masondo on Tuesday night.
"We see ourselves as a 'playmaker' for enhancing the value of the tourism economy of Johannesburg," said chairman Aggrey Klaaste.
He added that this would involve creating "networks, partnerships and linkages with all parties involved in tourism in Johannesburg". This would mean facilitating, co-ordinating and creating synergy between existing tourism organisations and companies operating in the city.
The Johannesburg Tourism Company was formed in April this year, as a Section 21 company owned by the City of Johannesburg, with an independent board drawn exclusively from the private sector. The City plans to pump R12-million into the company over the next three years, with the expectation that after that time additional funding will be generated from the private sector.
Klaaste, busy appointing staff at his new offices in Parktown North, said the company would be concentrating on four specific areas: tourism marketing, tourism information dissemination, tourism research and the setting up of a conventions and incentives bureau. Workshopping among the different sectors of tourism in Johannesburg will be the first step, with the aim of establishing areas of co-operation between the different sectors.
There will be four target markets: Johannesburg residents, the domestic tourism market, the African tourist market, the UK and European market, Asia, the US and Australasia.
One of the concerns of Klaaste is that tourists usually see Johannesburg as a stopover point for other destinations, staying in the city for three days and less. The company plans to launch an "Enjoy another day in Johannesburg" campaign to allow tourists to explore the city a little longer.
"Our combined and collaborative efforts must be aimed at making each day that a tourist spends in Johannesburg an enjoyable one, a day like no other elsewhere," said Masondo.
The company also plans to get tourists into the city out of season, but more broadly, encourage "the tourism economy for the country as a whole by providing information to tourists on other South African destinations". This means liaising with the Gauteng Tourism Authority and South African Tourism.
An operating division of the company will be the Johannesburg Convention Bureau, which plans to research and identify tenders for major events to be held in Johannesburg.
The company is working on developing further its database of tourism-related information with its own research unit. In this regard it has formed an alliance with Grant Thornton Kessel Feinstein, specialists in the tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors, and plans to release its first batch of tourism statistics at the end of September.
Commenting on tourism in the suburbs of Johannesburg, Klaaste stressed that the company was planning to make the south as attractive as the wooded, well-networked suburbs of the north. He also wanted to see the rundown, overcrowded suburb of Hillbrow being rejuvenated. "We want a cosmopolitan and exotic African suburb where we showcase Angola and Mozambique and highlight their cuisine and cultures."
On the issue of crime and its impact on tourism, Masondo emphasised that certain corrective measures have been taken by the City, including the launch of the Metro Police; the use of CCTV cameras, for which a budget of R8-million has been allocated this year to expand the surveillance programme; and stricter enforcement of by-laws, reinforced by a zero-tolerance approach.
Klaaste concluded the launch by saying: "The rebirth of this city is overdue."
Permission to use web site material
Publishers may use material from this site free of charge, as long as:
- Credit is given to either the "City of Johannesburg website
(www.joburg.org.za)" or to "Johannesburg News Agency
(www.joburg.org.za)";
- If the article is used online, a link is provided to the original
article on this website;
- The name of the article's author is acknowledged;
-
The webmaster is informed of how and where the material is used (fill
in this brief online form).
Johannesburg News Agency is operated by BIG Media at 011-484-1400 |
