The Northern Cape and Free State have entered into a tourism collaboration aimed at an increased market share that is set to spark economic benefits for both provinces. The cross-border marketing efforts are set to focus on the sharing of resources amongst other aspects.
“This agreement is very important for the Northern Cape and tourism in general. Tourism has been identified as one of the sectors to assist the government of South Africa in addressing poverty and unemployment. There are no borders in tourism, it does not make sense to compete with each other, let us rather complement each other and extend the packages that would sell.
“The longer our package, our activities that can keep people longer in this region – they will stay and that is where the economic impact comes from. This will enable those involved in tourism businesses especially SMMEs to start engaging with each other, networking with each other and becoming sustainable tourism businesses because that is what we also wanting to achieve,” emphasised Sharron Lewis the Chief Executive Officer of the Northern Cape Tourism Authority.
The signing of the agreement will extend beyond efforts in drawing tourists but also in the sharing of research and the drawing of lessons from the Free State’s heritage tourism brand speciality drawcard.
Chief Executive Officer of the Free State Gambling, Liquor and Tourism Authority Kenny Dichabe cited the tourism research that is being undertaken by the Central University of Technology on the authority’s behalf as what could translate into an immediate benefit for the Northern Cape.
“As we develop strategies those strategies need to be guided by credible data and often we do not have research capacity because of the size of the institutions we run. The Northern Cape Tourism Authority doesn’t have to go sign a research agreement because we have that agreement. I do not have to go sign an M.O.U with the Namibian Tourism Authority because the Norther Cape has got that relationship.
“We have the Basotho Cultural Village which recognises the culture of the Basotho but then in the Northern Cape you have the Nama-Khoi and the San and there is a lot of culture. And obviously the Northern Cape could learn a few things and make sure at least one cultural village is placed somewhere in the province strategically.
“Again the issue of people to people relationships you can do it at an international level but this M.O.U seeks to bring it to a local level. The people of the Free State, the people of the Northern Cape if you look at where we are, we are just neighbours, so that should not be any boundaries between us and that is why we just have to leverage and harness that relationship and the potential that lies in both our markets and provinces.”
By Thabo Mothibi
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Thabo Mothibi is a former broadcast journalist (TV and Radio) – with specialist reporting experience; SABC Political/Parliamentary and TRC Teams over a period of five years (1995 to 2000).
One key foreign assignment - is the 11-nation African Connection Rally – overland journey from Africa’s northern-most pole in the coastal Tunisian city of Bizerte to the southern-most pole in South Africa’s Cape Agulhas. From the journalistic years, Thabo then delved into Government media liaison and serving two former Ministers and three MECs. He became the Northern Cape Provincial Government’s first department based Communications Director at Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development - 2008-2010 – where he also served as Head of Ministry from 2003 – 2008.
As a former anti-apartheid activist, his political background and professional training aided him in spearheading the Northern Cape ANC’s 2004 National Elections media and publicity campaign and that of the 2006 Local Government Elections.
Whilst based in Waterkloof in Pretoria -2010 to end 2011, he consulted for Manstrat Agricultural Intelligence, then returned to the Northern Cape in 2012 to date, to consult independently and pursue other entrepreneurial interests in media and communications through KwaVuko Communications and Marketing.
Thabo Mothibi obtained his NQF7 through Wits University’s Graduate School of Public and Development Management (P&DM) in Johannesburg, a Unilever Mandela Rhodes Academy for Marketing and Communications Academy (UMRA). The goal of the NQF7 programme was to educate and train public and private sector professional communicators and marketers in government communications..
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