W Cape rolling out the welcoming mat
THE Western Cape was ready to welcome visitors ahead of the tourism season, Finance and Economic Opportunities MEC David Maynier said yesterday.
“The tourism sector remains the backbone of the Western Cape economy, supporting over 300 000 direct and indirect jobs in our province alone, thanks to the millions of tourists who flock to the region annually to enjoy some of the most scenic and breathtaking locations that the globe has to offer,” he said.
“That is why we have embarked on a number of initiatives to increase visitors to the province and ensure that we retain a high return visitor rate.”
Recently, in partnership with the City, the department launched the Tourism Law Enforcement Unit to provide additional security to those visiting Cape Town. Since early November, this dedicated unit has been deployed in key tourist areas, including the cable car parking areas, the V&A Waterfront bridge, St George’s Mall and the Bo-Kaap.
Maynier and mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith met with these law enforcement officers this week. At the meeting, Smith said: “The tourism sector and the jobs it provides are valuable to us, so we’re deploying staff to the CBD and other tourism areas to ensure and prioritise the safety of our visitors.”
Maynier said the provincial Department
of Economic Development and Tourism had been working with municipalities to ensure they were ready for tourists by increasing staff and doing beach clean-ups. Visitor information centres had also been equipped to deal with any queries and additional traffic management had been scheduled.
He said the department had also been operating a 24-hour, 7-days a week tourism safety and support programme which, together with Cape Town Tourism’s Band-Aid initiative, assisted and supported tourists in situations of distress.
“We have also developed a co-ordinated response between the government and the tourism industry to provide clear messaging on tourism safety and the drought so that visitors are informed when they visit here,” Maynier said.