An urgent meeting by the Tourism Portfolio Committee to discuss the controversial R910 million Tottenham Hotspur sponsorship deal was scheduled to take place today, Tuesday February 7, according to DA Shadow Minister of Tourism, Manny de Freitas.
“The revelation that SA Tourism’s interim CFO has ties to the agency that would cash in on this deal, makes this meeting urgent and critical,” said De Freitas.
He said in a statement that the February 2 press briefing by Themba Khumalo, Acting CEO of SA Tourism, had left more questions than answers.
“The DA believes that sports teams are not required to promote South Africa. This money must be used to buy diesel to alleviate load shedding, or go to tourism infrastructure. Sports teams are not required to promote South Africa, rather load shedding should be resolved which will in turn easily bring tourism back to our shores,” De Freitas noted.
Yet, said Khumalo, the proposal makes commercial sense and promises solid returns on investment in terms of increased tourism numbers from key source markets who already spend big in SA while on holiday.
He further told Travel News that protecting South Africa’s tourism supply side, providing financial assistance to struggling tourism businesses post-COVID, addressing infrastructure damage and fixing power supply issues was a mandate to be fulfilled by government.
“SA Tourism’s mandate, as the marketing arm of the Department of Tourism, is to meet the target of growing tourism numbers – through high-impact campaigns – to reach the target 21 million tourist arrivals by 2030,” Khumalo pointed out.
Industry ‘blindsided’
Industry, however, remains unconvinced by Khumalo’s business case. And, despite his assurances that SA Tourism had agreed with the private sector through its associations, that higher spend on major events – instead of a series of smaller campaigns – was needed, industry said it felt blindsided by the proposal.
Expressing concern over the real return on investment, SATSA CEO, David Frost, said: “To achieve the real tourism growth South Africa needs, we must grow our arrivals from India and China, among other markets. And when you look at countries like Malta and Rwanda which have pursued this tactic previously, awareness-raising has not necessarily resulted in an increase in leisure tourist arrivals.”
This sentiment was reiterated by others in the industry, including Tourism Business Council of South Africa CEO, Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa: “The TBCSA urges SAT to cancel this proposal and create an opportunity for a meaningful engagement toward our shared goals. We believe that robust dialogue about the marketing of South Africa as a preferred destination should not occur without the buy-in of the private sector and industry at large. The buy-in will ensure that we as South Africans hunt as a pack for the greater good of our tourism industry.”
Calls from other quarters, including trade union, Cosata, have intensified for the deal with English football club Tottenham Hotspur to be scrapped.
According to media reports citing President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, the President himself is questioning how this high spend can be justified.
Board resignations
Meanwhile, rumours that a number of people had resigned from the South African Tourism Board have officially been confirmed.
South African Tourism confirmed in a statement sent out early on Saturday morning (February 4) confirming that Enver Duminy (CEO of Cape Town Tourism), Ravi Nadasen (CEO Reddam House and ex-Tsogo SUN COO), and FEDHASA National Chair, Rosemary Anderson, had resigned from the Board with immediate effect.
Chairperson of the SA Tourism Board, Dr Audrey Mhlongo, thanked the three individuals for their “invaluable contribution” to the board during their tenure.
Minister of Tourism, Lindiwe Sisulu, accepted the resignations of the three board members and thanked them for their service. The process of appointing suitable replacements is under way, she said.
