BECOME A TOURIST IN YOUR OWN COUNTRY!
SOUTH Africa is truly the world in one country. From Africa’s very edge at Cape Point to the ranges of the Drakensberg that stretch into the heavens, to the wonders of the wildlife that the country is blessed with, domestic and international tourists alike praise the wonders of what they find in South Africa.
Every day we receive messages from across the globe about the marvels that international visitors have experienced and how they want to come back for more.
It is also true that scores of
South Africans are yet to discover the wonder that is South Africa.
Our country boosts amazing UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco)
World Heritage sites that are just a stone’s throw away and, contrary to perceptions, are affordable experiences.
In Kwazulu-natal alone, we have the ukhahlamba Drakensberg mountain range, which will test any hiking ability, with caves replete with bushman paintings. The World Heritage Site of Isimangaliso Wetland Park, the beautiful blue flag beaches of the South Coast, the historic battlefields inland and the rich cultural diversity of Durban itself.
The choices are vast with
South Africa’s nine heritage sites, including the Barberton Makhonjwa Mountains in Mpumalanga, the Vredefort Dome with a crater (diameter of 190 km) in the Free
State Dome and the Cape Floral Region Protected Areas, among the richest in plant life worldwide, containing nearly 20 percent of Africa’s total flora.
Our clarion call to every South African is – become a tourist in your own country, let us all do tourism.
The aim behind the #Wedotourism movement is to give citizens a sense of fulfilment, of travelling our country and welcoming the world to it.
The impact of tourism on the South African economy is well acknowledged. Its contribution to the total South African gross domestic product stands at 9 percent. We can do better, and this can be nurtured and expanded through domestic tourism. One has only to think about the jobs that tourism creates to appreciate the effect of this sector on the economy to help the country power itself through the 21st century.
Recent research by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) has suggested that, by 2028, the number of people employed in tourism in South Africa could rise to 2.1 million.
Phindile Makwakwa is the acting chief executive of Tourism Kwazulu-natal