South African Tourism on Saturday launched a new marketing brand at the opening of the annual tourism Indaba in Durban on Saturday.
”The new brand, a natural progression resulting from the 2002 launch of South African Tourism’s ‘Tourism Growth Strategy’ and based around everything being possible in South Africa, is the result of more than a year’s planning and collective strategic input,” said chief executive Cheryl Carolus in a press statement.
”Its values and personality focus on realness — real human contact, real answers and the joy of real sensation — both rooted and natural.”
Meanwhile the new Tourism and Environment Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk said at the Indaba that increasing air access to South Africa would be of his priorities.
”It is well known that increasing air access was close to my heart in the Western Cape (where he had previously been premier), and I believe that on the national level it is just as important.
”We will be collaborating with our colleagues in other departments to prioritise bilateral and multi-lateral negotiations with key markets –to increase the accessibility of our outstanding tourism products, and also to examine enhanced visa access for, and improved services to tourists.”
Van Schalkwyk said his department would finalise its black economic empowerment scorecard by the end of this year as well as concentrate greater resources on increasing the share of tourism received by the six least-visited provinces.
He said domestic tourism and intra-African tourism presented some of South Africa’s best growth opportunities.
”All leading tourism nations like France, Italy and Spain, rely on robust domestic tourism to an even greater extent than on international visitors,” he said.
Van Schalkwyk added that on the international front his ministry was completing its tourism competitiveness study ”which will focus and optimise our international marketing efforts”.
”In the process, I believe we need to target regions like South America, the Near and Far East, and China — areas experiencing rapid economic development.” ‒ Sapa