THE Zulu Royal House, with the public endorsement of King Goodwill Zwelithini, will officially back KwaZulu Natal Tourism Authority's ambitious three-year Tourism Strategy 2000 plan and provide key input with the branding drive of the province as the 'Kingdom of the Zulu'.
Speaking at the official launch of the strategy last month - which hopes to significantly raise the numbers of domestic and international tourists, almost double tourism revenue and to create more than 200 000 tourism jobs - King Zwelethini said he was confident that the Royal House was "on the right track" with its commitment to the "three-year masterplan".
He added that while the Zulu brand was extremely strong and appealed especially to international visitors, it was his interpretation that the brand belongs to all the people and that it was KZN's cultural diversity which proved its greatest drawcard.
The king also appealed to the people of the region to create a tourism culture in the province.
"If we are not visiting our own areas, why should overseas visitors visit them?"
Chief executive of the KZNTA, Gareth Coleman said that bold targets had been set upfront because "that's the way we want to be measured in future".
The Tourism Strategy 2000 document says it aims to increase domestic visitors by 1,24 million - from 8m to 9,24m and almost double tourism revenue from R9bn to R17bn per year.
The plan also seeks to increase the number of international visitors per annum from 500 000 to 880 000.
(Adele Mackenzie)
