Skip Ribbon Commands
Skip to main content
South African Tourism Call Centre E-Tools Facebook Twitter
Deputy Minister Thabethe interacts with the community of Mabopane
Deputy Minister Thabethe interacts with the community of Mabopane
In line with the National Imbizo Focus Week the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Elizabeth Thabethe interacted with the community of Mabopane, at the Mabopane Indoor Sports Hall, yesterday. 

During the imbizo, which seeks to promote skills development, career and entrepreneurial opportunities particularly for youth, the Deputy Minister also took an opportunity to mobilise and galvanise society to take a firm stand against Gender-Based Violence and crime in general, as well as to respond to the call to action to build the South Africa we want: “Send Us! Thuma Mina!”.

The National Imbizo Focus Week, also known as the Fortnight of Activism as pronounced by Cabinet on 24 October 2018, is scheduled for 12 to 25 November 2018 focusing on issues of national importance and public priority. These Izimbizo seek to ignite social partnerships and contribute positively to government endeavours including initiatives aimed at good governance, improved internal staff and external citizen and stakeholder morale, as well as public confidence in efforts aimed at reigniting the economy, creating jobs and building a prosperous society all can benefit from.

At the backdrop of the National Imbizo Focus Week is the centenary celebrations of struggle stalwarts Mama Albertina Sisulu and former President Nelson Mandela, which provides with an opportunity to recommit ourselves to their principles and values of building a nation bound by a common destiny.

In his welcoming remarks, the MMC for Economic Development, Randall Williams, reiterated the United Nations World Tourism Organisation sentiments on tourism being one of the world’s largest generators of jobs and a powerful driver of the socio-economic growth and sustainable development. 

“In an effort to ensure that tourism yields the benefits it has the potential to deliver, we as the city are recognising our Tourism Division to focus on the sectors we believe can yield more positive results. We will be focusing our efforts on Domestic Tourism, Business Tourism and Sports and Events Tourism”, said Mr Williams.

In her address, the Deputy Minister encouraged those in attendance to take up the opportunities put in place by government in assisting communities to develop economically.

“As the Department of Tourism, we have numerous programmes that seek to empower our people, mainly women and the youth in developing and sustaining their businesses. Our department is also passionate about providing skills to unemployed youth, as a measure of addressing the scourge of unemployment in our country”, said the Deputy Minister. 

The imbizo was also focused on tourism and its value chain targeting a total of 500 participants which includes youth in tourism, women in tourism, entrepreneurs and aspiring tourism practitioners. 

The programme also saw officials from the department making presentations on the various programmes that are currently in place and how citizens can access them. These included enterprise development, skills development as well as the Tourism Incentive Programme. 

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