​More than 10 000 learners, tourism students, graduates and educators will descend on the Free State in October 2015 to attend the National Tourism Career Expo (NTCE).

The Free State province will host this three-day Expo for the first time at PACOFS from 1 - 3 October 2015, under the theme “Tourism: Alive with Opportunities”.

The expo aims to position tourism as a valued and vibrant career of choice, and drive South Africa’s National Tourism Sector Strategy’s (NTSS) goal of creating 225 000 tourism jobs opportunities by 2020.

Deputy Minister of Tourism, Ms Tokozile Xasa, will officially launch the NTCE at a media event in Bloemfontein. The launch will highlight the expo as an interactive, not to be missed event for learners, educators and unemployed youth looking to start a career in the tourism and hospitality sector.

The NTCE is an initiative of the Department of Tourism and the Culture, Arts, Hospitality and Sports Sector Education and Training (CATHSSETA). Initiated in 2008, this event will create opportunities for tourism diversification and harnessing local skills for livelihood prospects looking at trade, tourism or cultural hubs within the Free State.