Maile: Gauteng positioning itself as a global tourism & events destination

Gauteng Finance and Economic Development MEC Lebogang Maile said the province was repositioning itself as a global tourism and events destination, with township and heritage development at the heart of its transformation agenda.

Speaking at Constitution Hill during World Tourism Day celebrations, Maile revealed that Gauteng welcomed over three million international visitors last year, contributing R41.2 billion in direct tourism revenue.

Domestic tourism added a further R21 billion.

Despite these figures, he admitted that South Africa’s tourism recovery was still lagging behind regional peers like Morocco and Tanzania.

Maile said the province’s tourism recovery plan included expanding the Gautrain network, revitalising heritage sites, upgrading government-owned nature reserves and rolling out large-scale training in hospitality and entrepreneurship.

Maile also announced that Gauteng was positioning itself to host major global events.

"Support and investment by the private sector, to host world-class spectacles such a Formula 1, the Joburg Tennis Open, the World Universities Festival." he said.

Township economies will receive particular focus, with support for local restaurants, quality assurance initiatives, and efforts to link small businesses to the tourism supply chain.