A senior multi departmental government delegation team will on Wednesday 13 February 2019 host a stakeholder meeting with representative of business, tourism, residents and other interested and affected parties with the aim of addressing continuing challenges and recent developments in the Vilakazi Street tourism node in Soweto.
The meeting follows an initial fact mission in October 2018 by representatives of the Department of Tourism, Gauteng Tourism Agency and Johannesburg City Council with representatives of the Vilakazi Tourism Association.
The meeting is expected to lay the basis for future consultations as well as short and midterm interventions to address various issues raised by the stakeholders with the following key priorities:
To develop a precinct development framework, with Vilakazi Street Precinct as a pilot site in collaboration and consultation with relevant provincial and local government, as well as private sector stakeholders
Safety and security: develop a stakeholder plan/compact based on capacitating local communities to guide the effectiveness of operating the community policing forum;
Access: support City of Johannesburg (Codi) to review all access issues such as signage, parking and traffic safety so as to generate improvement plans;
Land and space for expansion: spatially map the existing precinct, identify additional space for land-use and expansion of the precinct such as community recreational facilities, and review and incorporate infrastructure upgrade plans from IDPs into the precinct;
Enterprise development: support the establishment of new SMMEs, as well as provide existing tourism enterprises with business support services,
MEMBERS OF THE MEDIA ARE INVITED AS FOLLOWS ( OPEN FOR FULL DURATION):
Date: 13 February 2019, UNCLE TOM’S HALL, ORLANDO SOWETO
Time: 10h00 – 13h00
| 10h00 | Opening and Welcome | Ms Pumla Ncapayi, HOD : Gauteng Department of Economic Development |
| 10h15 | Opening Remarks & Purpose | Mr. Victor Tharage, Director General Department of Tourism |
| 10h30 | Overview - Situation in Vilakazi precinct | Mr. Shadrack Motau Vilakazi Community Leader |
| 10h30 | Presentation on proposed plans by City of Johannesburg | Mr. Theban Sit hole: Specialist Strategic Urban Planning, City of Johannesburg |
| Vilakazi Precinct Tourism plans | Department of Tourism |
| 11h30 13:00 | Response , Way Forward & Closing remarks | DAC, SAPS, JMPD, Dept. of Tourism, Province, GTA, Codi etc. |
NOTE TO EDITORS
Accordingly, the following stakeholder are expected to participate at the meeting :
| No. | Organisation(s) | Issues to respond to |
| 1. | Department of Tourism Tourism | Safety and Toruism Development |
| 2. | Department of Arts & Culture | Artists, crafters, singers, cultural groupings |
| 3. | Gauteng Department of Economic Development | Tourism plans, gains and losses |
| 4. | Gauteng Tourism Agency Tourism | Marketing and SMME support |
| 5. | City of Johannesburg | Urban Planning, By-laws, CCTV cameras |
| 6. | South African Police Services | ATM Scams, Drugs and Criminal syndicates |
| 7. | Department of Community Safety | Community safety , social crime |
| 8. | Johannesburg Metro Police Services | Accessibility, road closures, congestions |
| 9. | Soweto Tourism, Vilakazi Business , Vilakazi Street Residents Associations | Success, challenges and recommendations |
Enquiries:
Mr Blessing Manale
Chief Director Communications and Departmental Spokesperson
Department of Tourism
Telephone: +27 (0) 12 444 6607
Cell: +27 (0) 66 487 8867
Email: bmanale@tourism.gov.za