By Simon Nare
North West MEC for economic development, environment, conservation and tourism, Bitsa Lenkopane, has called for increased commitment and initiative from municipalities to boost local tourism, aiming to drive economic growth in the province.
During a recent meeting with municipal leaders, Lenkopane emphasised the need for enhanced marketing and promotion of the region’s attractive tourism destinations.
This call to action comes as the province prepares to host world leaders later this year, having recently conducted a series of G20 preparatory workshops across South Africa.
Lenkopane told municipal leaders, including members of mayoral committees across the province, that as part of efforts to stimulate local tourism, they should improve the grading systems of tourism establishments.
She said as the provincial government, the department was constitutionally obliged to help municipalities grow tourism in their areas, but municipalities must lead the way in identifying projects which the department would financially support.
She further encouraged municipalities to work with communities to help set up tourism projects, and if they were financially unable to do this, the department would be on hand to help them, either through funding or applications for funding.
“I need municipalities because they are on the ground to identify the needs and then I facilitate. Generally, this department is there to facilitate,” said Lenkopane.
“Where there is economic growth opportunities, where there is tourism opportunities, the more the municipalities raise their hands, the more our department through this engagement that we have with international partners we can direct the investors to these projects.”
On her recent trip to Russia, she said the department realised the need to intensify social tourism to advance the transformation of rural areas and help them create jobs.
Lenkopane said the department learnt the aspects and importance of village, agricultural, mining and industrial tourism, which needed to be intensified.
“These are areas that need to be intensified to advance our culture and heritage. So, the collaboration that we will need in these areas is that we want to market different tourism destinations,” she said.
“This is not only to focus on the photographic tourism as well as tourism around the big areas like the Hartbeespoort, but also tourism in the sense of making people to start to understand their areas as tourism destinations.”
The MEC added that it was important for municipalities to make people aware of the grants that were available to them if they chose career paths in tourism or wanted to start programmes which would in turn create jobs in their areas.
Lenkopane’s call comes on the back of the department funding the construction of a museum at the Taung fossil site where a human skull was discovered in 1924.
The discovery, which is known as the Taung Chlid, is significant because it was the first time a hominid was discovered in Africa.
The museum is expected to be launched next month.
It is part of the department’s drive to drum up rural development and is likely to spark tourism potential and encourage cultural tourism in the province.
INSIDE POILTICS