Festive Season Tourism Campaign launched

Officially launching the Festive Season Tourism Campaign, the MEC of the Department of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, Vusi Mkhatshwa, said the Covid-19 pandemic has had a negative impact on tourism sector and the economy in general, and the need to help revitalise the sector arose.

“This time last year, most of our tourism attractions were closed and tourists could not travel freely as the pandemic was rampant and superimposed on people’s lives. Regrettably, our once resilient tourism sector was not spared.

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As a result, a number of tourism businesses closed their doors permanently, and unfortunately, some people lost their jobs and their livelihoods were significantly disrupted by the shock of this invincible enemy. This was evident from the number of tourists who visited South Africa and the province in 2020 as compared to 2019,” said Mkhatshwa.

He officially launched the festive drive on Friday at the Hazyview’s Reserve Boutique Hotel, attended by both local and national media outlets.

As part of this event, the MTPA organised a number of activities for journalists, such as river rafting, bungee jumping and quad biking. According to Stats SA, fewer than five million foreign tourists visited South Africa in 2020, compared to 15.8 million in 2019, signifying a huge drop.

From that, Mpumalanga’s share in 2020 was also hopelessly below the 300 000 mark, as compared to 1.6 million in 2019.

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“In our quest to rekindle the sector, we have just concluded celebrating the successful Tourism Month in September. Through the partnership we continue to nurture with the media, we were able to confirm to our people and to international tourists that our province is ready once again to welcome domestic visitors and international tourists. We can unambiguously report that during the long weekend in September, all accommodation establishments in this district were fully booked for the first time since we had reopened the sector, and this is a result of the robust and pulsating campaign we undertook during Tourism Month,” Mkhatshwa said.

He said tourism remains the province’s goldmine, and accordingly, means to help revive the sector should always be prioritised.

“In keeping the momentum, we are today launching the 2021 Festive Season Campaign. Through this campaign, we want to disseminate the message that Mpumalanga is travel-ready. We want to encourage our people in the province and across the country, as well as potential tourists from outside our borders, to come and visit, explore and enjoy our diverse tourism product offerings.”