BY GREGORY AUSTIN NWAKUNOR
IN less than a week’s time, Africa’s leading travel and tourism trade exhibition will open in Durban, South Africa.
Building on the legacies of the phenomenal success of the 2010 event, this year’s show will focus on celebrating a record year of tourism growth and unpacking the new goals set for the tourism industry.
With Playing Globally, Winning Locally, as theme for Indaba 2011, South African Tourism is set to tap from the windfall of 2010, which saw a 15.1 per cent increase in the number of people, who visited in 2009.
According to the organisers, visitors to the travel/trade fair should be ready for an amazing time in Durban and be prepared to enjoy themselves at Durban's hottest beach party on Saturday, May 7.
“You will definitely dance to beats and taste unique Durban cuisine, lay back and enjoy the warm Indian Ocean sea breeze and not forgetting indulging in your first two complimentary drinks, which are on us,” said the organisers. “We'd love to meet you and give you some insights into why Durban has become South Africa's premier lifestyle destination. Warm weather all year round, spicy foods, melting pot of activities and events, amazing nightlife, incredible restaurants and shopping and most of all people with soul and a positive attitude to life.”
Visitors and exhibitors will be exposed to an exhibition floor space larger than four soccer fields (27 000sqm) with over 7000 items of furniture, 6,5km of electrical cable and a further 4100 square metres of octonorm walling dividing the spaces for specific use. 21 000 square metres of carpeted flooring will prove to be welcome relief for the more than 500 trained staff and students who will act as production hands during the event, anticipated to cover more than 15 kilometres each while servicing exhibitors, the production team and guests during the event.
“We will acknowledge the buoyant growth in the industry and use Indaba to pay tribute to the considerable role played by all stakeholders in the tourism industry, while at the same time also look at the factors that led to South Africa outperforming the global rate of tourism growth by over eight percent last year and the opportunities which have emanated as a result,” said SA Tourism CEO, Thandiwe January-McLean. “We have always maintained that Indaba is far more than just a four-day event.”
Witch and Wizard Creative (Pty) Ltd, the organisers of the event, have the arduous task of keeping the crowds content throughout the four exhibition days.
The Chief Executive Officer, Zaida Enver gave a little insight into the quantity of food and refreshments needed to sustain energy levels, “This year, we are looking to produce more than 10 644 lunchboxes over the four days, with an additional allocation of public catering for 12 948 people. Historically, the most in-demand item on the menu is take-away coffee, which we anticipate will result in sales of approximately 7 500 cups.”
Building on maintaining the energy-saving practices launched at the 2009, SA Tourism will continue efforts to keep this year’s event as environmentally friendly as possible.
According to historical data, the 2009 edition showed a marginal environmental performance improvement of 3 per cent. Energy consumption decreased by 15 per cent, and the overall primary carbon impact decreased by 26 tonnes.
This year, visitors can look forward to the introduction of innovative platforms that will go some way towards building a responsible and ‘green’ reputation.
These platforms include the adoption of Poken technology, a unique networking tool aimed at negating the need for business cards.
“Even though something as simple as a business card may not seem to add to a significant carbon footprint, when one considers the prevalence of business cards at a networking event of this size, the numbers do really start adding up,” said William Price, Global Manager: E-Marketing at SA Tourism. “We normally see the exchange of about half a million business cards at Indaba each year!”
Plans are already afoot to make visitors experience a whole new atmosphere in the city, The Moses Mabhida Stadium rises white and jewel-like and newly developed Beachfront Promenade has put the zing back into the Golden Mile.
MEANWHILE, the Regional Tourism Organisation of Southern Africa (RETOSA) is organising a destination marketing conference, which will hold during the travel fair.
The event will focus on how RETOSA and its member states can create an enabling environment for regional tourism growth and development.
The main objective of the RETOSA concept is facilitation of member states to develop and grow tourism through promotion of cooperation with the view that a developed tourism will ensure job creation and the improvement of the socio-economic well-being of the people of the region.
Representatives from tourism ministries from the 15 Southern Africa member states, international travel and tourism experts, as well as regional stakeholders will participate in this conference.
The aim of the conference is to create an organic platform that reaffirms the region as a single but multi-faceted travel and tourism destination. The conference will further provide key stakeholders an equal opportunity to provide input into RETOSA's regional tourism growth and development strategy while learning from some of the global best practices.
Essentially, the conference will serve as the region's signature platform for RETOSA to further engage member states, targeted travel trade and media about the region's readiness and preparedness to do business with the rest of the world.
RETOSA Chair, Dr. Sylvester Mangaunidze, stated that as international attention is now focused on Africa after sadly the recent chaos which have been occurring in Northern Africa, the conference came at the right time for Southern Africa to rise up to new heights, 'Given that Southern Africa is now seen to be politically and financially stable and the fact that it is one of Africa's most resource rich and economic potential regions, it is evident that it has gained competitive advantage over its competitors' he concluded.
The event will also examine issues related to:
21st Century Marketing Strategies in destination marketing such as destination branding, digital marketing and e-publishing among others
• Initiatives to eradicate bottlenecks hampering regional tourism growth and development
• Strategies to increase the Member States brand visibility, tourism arrivals and receipts
• Changing perceptions about the region among travel trade and media and creating a positive regional image – about diverse people, cultures, unrivalled landscapes, wildlife and investment opportunities and
• Responsible Tourism matters
Francis Mfune, RETOSA's Executive Director said 'the conference will also give tourism stakeholders the opportunity to learn and develop a common and shared vision for the growth and development of tourism in Southern Africa and member states'.
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