Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
By Anele Qaba – MBDA Chief Executive Officer.
The steady growth of the regional business events (BE) sector, formerly referred to as MICE, has cushioned the tourism downturn currently experienced in the Bay. Several value businesses in manufacturing have already closed their doors and jobs have been lost, but the BE industry has been a bright star in this challenging period for the tourism industry.
The MBDA has long recognised that the industry is also the most impactful as a destination and investment promoter. Business events often bring people who have never visited and would be unlikely to think of visiting the Bay on holiday. The events provide an opportunity to highlight the compelling experiences that our city offers. The extent of the positive media coverage from business events could never be bought by the inadequately funded destination marketing organisation in the Municipality. Probably the most valuable benefit is the social media posts that have become such powerful attractors to new destinations because of their social groups trust factor.
The MBDA has observed that the industry has been the engine of economic growth with cities like Barcelona, Las Vegas and Singapore and has played a large part in transforming their economies. Common factors mentioned in case studies are that those attending business events are mostly high value visitors and that they stay for several days. One of the most significant benefits mentioned is that the events occur during the off season and often create fresh opportunities. As a result of this significant opportunity to boost the Nelson Mandela Bay economy, the MBDA has prioritised several projects in this sector that will boost the competitive advantage of the Metro.
Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban remain South Africa’s leading business event destinations due to their brand awareness, established infrastructure and global connectivity. Nelson Mandela Bay can become more competitive as a business event industry destination. To achieve this, several barriers must be removed. The NMB Council has to dramatically review the priority and resources that it allocates to initiatives that have the potential to stimulate economic and employment growth. Other factors holding us back include administrative misalignment between mandated departments, with a reluctance to collaboration with the local events industry. Of course, the elephant in the room is the establishment of an International Convention Centre (ICC). The MBDA stands ready to drive this project as soon as the relevant service delivery frameworks and public and private partnerships are enabled to proceed.
The MBDA believes that our destination has many unique experiences to offer to the business events industry, and these include easy access to world-class nature reserves, cultural attractions and breakaway activities to boost the delegate experience. As an example, the opportunity of hosting a luxury business event under the bridge leading to Happy Valley is a compelling option that is unique to the Bay. The views of the ocean, the unique venue and the opportunity to dance on the sand are just some of the offerings to business event organisers that will exceed the normal event offerings experienced by delegates.
The economic development directorate took a bold step by creating the Nelson Mandela Bay Convention Bureau to drive business tourism in Nelson Mandela Bay. The small team promotes the Metro as a premier destination for conferences, meetings, exhibitions and events. The most important success factor for the NMBCB is that they have fully embraced the commitment to partnering with businesses in this sector. They also work very closely with the National Conference Bureau. These partnerships have already delivered results as they have won several bids.
The MBDA entry into the business events industry was demonstrated with the recently opened World of Windows at the Bay stadium That venue has added a unique alternative to the four-walled conference venues in our Metro. Under the brand offer of ‘Let the Sunshine in’, the venue offers a full side of windows and high-quality AV equipment to counter the brighter light. It has given our city marketers a unique offering to promote at shows and to show to visiting conference organisers and media.
In the 2025/26 financial year, the MBDA is taking another bold step to create a competitive advantage for the industry in Nelson Mandela Bay. The Agency will be developing a 5 626-seat covered amphitheatre to boost the events capacity of the Metro. This spectacular venue will boost tourism in the Metro as its capacity and facilities will allow us to host shows and events that would not currently be possible. The facility will be situated between the NMB Stadium and the North End Lake site.
We are on track to complete detailed designs by the end of December 2025 with the manufacturing of the roof structure completed off site and installation of street furniture completed on site by 30 June 2026. We believe the amphitheatre initiative will attract a new stream of business and leisure events to the Bay to cushion the impact felt through the shrinking manufacturing base.
Collaboration will be critical if Nelson Mandela Bay wishes to take advantage of BE trend and develop a reputation of delivering experiences that will have delegates leaving with a feeling of being immersed in a story that they will never forget. The MBDA is committed to being a partner in the business events space as part of our mandate to drive economic development and job creation in our Metro.