Speech by Marthinus van
Schalkwyk, Minister of Environmental Affairs
and Tourism, on World Tourist Guide Day
at the 5th Anniversary of the Tourism Grading
Council of South Africa, in Cape Town, on
21 February 2006 Introduction
There has never been a time in the history
of South Africa when tourism has been more
central to the plans, expectations, and
programmes of Government. Although we have
seen excellent growth over a number of years,
and seen tourism overtake resources like
gold in terms of foreign exchange earnings,
there has always been a lingering perception
- especially within our industry - that
government somehow under-values the potential
and contribution of the sector. In the past
three weeks these doubts have been permanently
shredded.
The President and the Deputy President
have placed tourism front and centre in
the economic growth plan of Government.
ASGISA, the Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative
of South Africa, identifies only two sectors
of the economy for immediate priority interventions
- and tourism is one of these two (Business
Process Outsourcing is the other).
This is at the same time a sincere compliment,
a grave responsibility, and an unmatched
opportunity. It is time to step up and prove
what we have said for years - that tourism
is the new gold, that our sector is the
key to growth and jobs, and that as a sector
we have the will, the skill and the drive
to meet the challenge that has been issued
to us.
TGCSA 5th Anniversary & Importance
of Grading
There are so many reasons therefore why
it is appropriate to celebrate the 5th anniversary
of our Tourism Grading Council. I am pleased
to announce that, since 2001 the Grading
Council has officially graded 70% of all
available accommodation rooms in South Africa.
On World Tourism Day in 2004 I challenged
the Grading Council to do more to grade
backpackers and youth hostels, as well as
game reserves and lodges - at that time
only 8% and 16% respectively were part of
the star system. Today 20% of backpackers
and youth hostels, and a third of all game
reserves and lodges have been graded - a
substantial improvement. The Council has
also graded more than 130 meetings, exhibitions,and
special events venues - a world-first for
South Africa.
It is testimony to these achievements that
the Grading Council was invited by the World
Tourism Organisation - twice last year alone
- to present our Star Grading System as
a model case-study in promoting destinations.
The reason that these achievements are
such cause for celebration is the key importance
that quality assurance and standards play
in our industry. It is absolutely no use
to sort out problems of airlift, marketing,
skills development and product diversity
if the quality of our tourism experience
is lacking. Word of mouth is the single
most persuasive marketing tool - and news
of bad experiences spreads like wildfire.
In 2005 we launched the grading scheme
for restaurants - which thus far has not
been as rapidly adopted as we would have
liked by the industry. The Grading Council
will be holding countrywide workshops on
restaurant grading in March, and I would
like to urge all restaurateurs to get involved
in this process so that we can meet our
target of 40% of restaurants graded by the
time the World Cup begins in 2010. I am
also pleased to confirm that the Grading
Council will, later this year, be launching
a grading system for tourist transport services
and a star scheme for the golfing sector.
At a workshop last week with our national
Departments, it was clear that, despite
much enthusiasm for the Cabinet decision
to procure government accommodation only
from graded establishments, there is room
for improvement. Our Department and the
Grading Council will therefore be undertaking
roadshows with provincial governments before
the end of March to accelerate this process.
Gearing up for 2010 - Infrastructure, Grading
etc
It is no secret that the 2010 Soccer World
Cup offers our tourism industry a great
opportunity - both as a single event, and
as a milestone in boosting our global competitiveness.
This is why our Department, in partnership
with SA Tourism, has been working for the
better part of a year now on the 2010 Tourism
Organising Plan - a massively comprehensive
and holistic analysis of needs, opportunities
and threats.
Without going into too much detail - as
this will be released when the plan itself
is launched - one of the most important
challenges we face is the gap between the
projected demand for accommodation in host
cities, and the projected number of rooms
that will be available.
Our preliminary estimate is that, without
major public and private interventions,
we may be between 160 000 and 180 000 beds
short of the likely demand. This is not
to say that we should suddenly make massive
investments in building new accommodation
- although some may be necessary - but rather
this challenge will require innovative plans
for opening new kinds of accommodation,
better access and transport into match locations,
and expanding the radius of accommodation
used in these areas. It will also mean -
of course - the grading and quality assurance
of this accommodation. By 2010 we aim to
have graded 95% of all accommodation and
60% of all conference venues in the country.
R7,5 million for Skills Development - Minister
Issues 6-Month-Challenge
One of the keys - both to gearing up for
2010 and to meeting the challenges of ASGISA
- is to address the problem of skills and
capacity-building in tourism. As today is
also International Tourist Guide Day, this
is an even more appropriate opportunity
to address the issue.
Universities, technikons and other institutions
of higher learning have, for some time now,
complained that the tourism industry has
not properly identified the skills that
are most critically lacking in the sector.
At the same time the industry has complained
that the graduates being produced are not
appropriately skilled. This communication
impasse cannot be allowed to continue -
we cannot afford to continue to speak past
one another.
I am therefore issuing a challenge - to
both the institutions and the industry:
we have 6 months to get our house in order.
I am allocating R7,5 million to a partnership
between our Department, the Tourism Hospitality
and Education Training Authority (THETA),
the National Business Initiative, and the
Tourism Business Council of South Africa
(TBCSA) - to build a consensus Skills Plan,
to revise the existing curricula, and to
streamline the process of accreditation
and certification. In June, when our Department
presents its Budget Vote in Parliament,
it is my intention to report to the House
and to the nation, on our progress as Government
and as the private sector in this regard.
Conclusion
Marketing, transportation, product development,
information management, transformation,
safety, and skills development - these are
the key issues identified in ASGISA as the
priorities for tourism growth. Addressing
these issues will be our core business over
the next six months and beyond, as we rise
to meet the expectations that now run as
high as the potential of our sector.
I would like to ask you now to join me
in saluting the good work of Alan Romburgh,
Dr Salifou Siddo, and the Tourism Grading
Council Team as we celebrate with them 5
years of achievement, and a future of even
greater service.
