The Eastern Cape province recently hosted the annual Southern African Association for the Conference Industry (SAACI) at Addo from 30 July to 1 August. The theme for this year’s congress “telling a fresh story, “Focused on SAACI strategic areas of learning, growth and collaboration.
The Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency (ECPTA) supported the congress, to showcase the tourism offerings and potential of the Eastern Cape Province to the attendees from various provinces. Furthermore, events of this calibre provide an opportunity for the Agency to promote the Eastern Cape as a must-visit destination.
The Congress provided both members and non-members with the opportunity to engage, share experiences and learn about priority areas such as innovation, design, and professional learning opportunities.
The National Department of Tourism Deputy President, Fish Mahlalela said through research done by their own Analytics and Insights team at South African Tourism, they know that the African business events industry went from 13,6 billion US dollars in 2019 and contracted to 3,1 billion US dollars in 2020. Looking ahead, the region is anticipated to reach pre-pandemic figures by 2024.
“Looking at our country, projections show a considerable uptake with figures set to surpass 2019 pre-pandemic values by 2024 at an impressive 7,4 billion US dollars to ultimately reach 10,2, billion dollars by 2028,” said Mahlalela.
Mahlalela continued to encourage attendees that as a country it’s now time to reclaim our place as an attractive tourism and business events destination. He reassured that the government remains fully committed to growing South Africa’s business events sector, but the government cannot do it alone. Their partnership is immensely important to them as government.
The Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency (ECPTA) Chief Executive Officer extended his deepest gratitude to SAACI for providing this platform for the strategic direction and professional growth and hopes they make the most of this opportunity to elevate the tourism industry to new heights of excellence while honouring the culture, heritage and natural beauty that surrounds them.
“We have the power to transform challenges into opportunities and tell a fresh story of collaboration, innovation and positive impact. Let us collaborate, innovate and forge new paths to a sustainable and thriving business events community,” said Dayimani.
