Mail & Guardian reporter
Apart from the World Summit, which takes place in Sandton from August 26 to September 4, a Civil Society Global Forum will be held at Nasrec. The Wanderers Cricket Stadium will also host the Ubuntu Village, the cultural, transport and logistics hub.
The Johannesburg World Summit Company (Jowsco), which is organising the event, updated its State of Readiness Report on March 4. The report says:
Airports: Jowsco’s expectations have been presented to KLM, British Airways, Qantas, Lufthansa, Virgin and South African Airways. South African Airways’s corporate partnership sponsorship is being negotiated.
Accommodation: All hotel contracts have been finalised and approved by the Jowsco board. Training sessions are being held with other service providers.
Accreditation: A draft design for access badges has been completed and accreditation venues have been identified.
Environment: Jowsco has reached agreement with NGO Earthlife Africa to collaborate on a zero-waste summit. An environmental sustainability training module for volunteers is being prepared.
Hospitality: An operational plan for food and information services has been prepared. Locations for information kiosks have been identified.
Medical and disaster: A draft tender document has been completed.
Security: An operational plan for the Sandton Convention Centre is complete. Traffic-management organisers have been briefed about all identified routes and alternative routes for motorcades.
Transport: Hubs and routes have been identified. The airports plan is complete. Tender specifications for mass transportation have been approved and the roads plan has been announced.
Ubuntu Village: The business sector has been briefed for the appointment of 250 business people. Invitations have been sent to the United Nations’s NGO Liaison Unit for transmission to NGOs internationally.
Tourism: All provincial tourism road shows have been completed. Relationships with tour pro-moters and tourism suppliers were arranged during a trade show in Italy.