The City of Gold is hoping to live up to its name by turning tourism into that shiny bling we all love so much.
Joburg Tourism is at it again; in an effort to promote tourism investment opportunities in Johannesburg, MMC Ruby Mathang [Member of the Mayoral Committee for Economic Development] is leaded a delegation Joburg participated in at the 16th International Hotel Investment Forum in Berlin, Germany.
As the citys leadership, we recognize that tourism is a significant economic growth imperative and an important catalyst for building a vibrant city. We also appreciate our role to create an enabling and supportive environment in which the private sector can thrive and feel confident to invest in the tourism sector and create new and much-needed jobs, says Mathang. The City of Johannesburgs leadership is therefore committed to offering a favourable climate for investors, creating opportunities and offering incentives that will make this city an attractive destination for them.
Following on from the International Hotel Investment Forum, the Joburg Tourism team will then be participating in the annual ITB, one of the worlds leading travel trade shows, which will be taking place in Berlin from 7 9 March.
Joburg Tourisms participation in international trade shows forms part of its strategy to maintain and increase Johannesburgs market share in both the business and leisure travel arenas. As ITB is one of the largest global platforms for the leisure travel market, we will once again be presenting Joburgs position as a vibrant, cosmopolitan all year round destination for business, leisure and lifestyle, using the opportunity to launch our Autumn Campaign, entitled Explore Experience Enjoy Joburg this Autumn, says Phelisa Mangcu, Acting CEO, Johannesburg Tourism.
EXPLORE, EXPERIENCE, ENJOY JOBURG THIS AUTUMN!
With the Easter break and school holidays to look forward to, Autumn in Joburg is ideal for enjoying the fine, mellow weather and indulging in family outings and activities. Plenty of sports and cultural festivals, along with an ever growing host of attractions and activities are on offer for everyone to experience and enjoy.
Two of South Africas most high profile fashion events AFI Mercedes Benz Joburg Fashion Week and SA Fashion Week will be taking Joburg fashionistas by storm in March and April. The long running annual Rand Easter Show will once again be taking place in April, an iconic city event always guaranteed to entertain the whole family.
As Africas most exciting city, it makes sense that Joburg is also a mecca for entertainment by international artists, as the line-up of forthcoming superstars illustrates. Headline performances during March, April and May include R Kelly, Miguel, Baby Face, Bon Jovi and Justin Bieber. Theatregoers are also spoiled for choice with a variety of local legends (think Hugh Masakela), artists, comedians and productions on offer alongside fabulous internationally acclaimed shows like Jersey Boys, Essence of Ireland and Don Quixote (the ballet).
If public expos, summits, exhibitions and concerts arent for you, why not opt to experience Joburg as never before, from the decks of our latest tourist attraction the shiny bright red Hop On, Hop Off Buses? City Sightseeing, the brand that operates the iconic open-top red double decker buses on six continents and in over 100 cities in the world, was officially welcomed to Johannesburg this year – a fabulous service offering locals and visitors the chance to explore this vibrant city, visiting the many attractions on offer and sampling the cultural melting pot that is Jozi.
The tour runs along a fascinating route through the Johannesburg CBD that stops at Gandhi Square, the Roof of Africa at the Carlton Centre, the James Hall Transport Museum, the Apartheid Museum and Gold Reef City, the Mining District, the World of Beer, the Carlton Centre, Santarama Miniland, Newtown Precinct, the Origins Centre, Wits Campus, Braamfontein and Constitution Hill. [For more details visit www.citysightseeing.co.za]
Explore, Experience and Enjoy Joburg, where theres always something to get excited about!
DESTINATION JOBURG FOR VIABLE INVESMENT OPPORTUNITIES
A delegation from the Citys Department of Economic Development will be travelling to Berlin to participate in the Hotel International Investment Forum, taking place from 4 6 March.
This will also be utilised as an opportunity to promote the Departments inaugural Buy Sell Invest Visit Conference and Expo set to take place in May 2013. Part of the Citys Buy Sell Invest and Visit initiative, this flagship programme that aims to bring together people from the BRICS and Southern African Development Community blocs to partner with private and public organisations.
This programme is part of the citys 2040 strategy, which outlines the growth of Johannesburg over the next three decades into a sustainable, prosperous and resilient place to live and work. It aims to not only attract new investment into the city, but support existing businesses and help them to expand.
Envisaged as an annual calendar event, this three day conference is targeted at 1000 prominent local, provincial, national and international business stakeholders. Its purpose is to attract investment, seek markets for our products and maintain top of mind awareness of Joburg as a tourist destination, while showcasing our infrastructure capabilities.
Dates for this series of Johannesburg conferences are as follows:
* Infrastructure and alternative funding model [7 9 May 2013]
* Financial and business services [4 6 June 2013]
* Resource based and manufacturing [2 4 July 2013]
In terms of Johannesburgs Growth and Development Strategy [GDS] the Joburg 2040 [www.joburg.org.za/gds2040] – tourism remains an economic growth imperative on the citys agenda. It is an important catalyst to encourage the development of the SMME sector in order to stimulate the growth and development of a vibrant second economy.
In this context, the citys leadership remains focused on positioning Joburg not only as the continents leading business hub and vibrant all year round leisure and lifestyle destination, but also as offering plenty of opportunities as a base for viable tourism investments.
The Lanseria precinct and Midrand Business District are just two of as the key tourism investment areas which have been identified for this purpose and significant projects include the development of:
– World class accommodation facilities
– State of the art meeting venues
– Professional hospitality services encompassing transport, training, amenities, suppliers, entertainment, gambling and cuisine
