M van Schalkwyk: National 2010 FIFA World Cup Tournament Accommodation Workshop

Opening speech by Dr Essop Pahad, Minister in The Presidency and member of the Board of the 2010 Local Organising Committee, 2010 National Communication Partnership Conference, Johannesburg

I am excited to be convening the first national 2010 Federation International Football Association (FIFA) World Cup Tournament Accommodation workshop, which is a milestone in our preparations for an event that is going to provide a major boost to our economy. This workshop is an excellent first step towards ensuring that the benefits of the World Cup are felt by all sectors of the business community from multinational companies to family businesses. It is an excellent example of government working hand in hand with the tourism industry and broader stakeholders to make sure that our planning is aligned and targeted towards a common goal – an African World Cup that we can all be proud of.

We anticipate that 3,5 million people will be involved in the upcoming tournament – this includes spectators, officials, sponsors and of course, the players themselves. An estimated 445 000 of the total number of participants will be foreigners and the balance will be South Africans who are expected to travel extensively within the country during the tournament.

According to the estimates in the 2010 tourism organising plan, the number of beds required per host city per match is as follows:

Bloemfontein: 19 900
Cape Town: 21 900
Durban: 32 900
Nelspruit: 19 900
Polokwane: 19 900
Port Elizabeth: 27 400
Rustenburg: 19 900
Gauteng: 76 800 - 109 700 (depending on the location of matches)

These estimates may change as the match schedules are finalised, but they provide a basis from which we may begin planning. In this regard, I would like to congratulate MATCH for the impressive progress that they have made in contracting hotel rooms in preparation for 2010. To date they have contracted almost 19 000 rooms in South Africa. Beyond our borders, MATCH has contracted 157 hotel rooms in Botswana and 329 rooms in Swaziland. This is a clear indication of the depth of our commitment to ensuring that the rest of the continent sees clear gains from the first African World Cup.

In previous tournaments, only hotels were contracted to accommodate people. However, I am proud to announce that we are delivering on our promise to ensure that participants in the 2010 World Cup will be treated to a uniquely African experience. For the first time ever, non-hotel accommodation such as national park accommodation, lodges, guesthouses, and bed and breakfasts will also be contracted. In order to access this opportunity, establishments will have to obtain a grading rating from the Tourism Grading Council.

To facilitate this, the Tourism Enterprise Programme (TEP) a partnership between the Business Trust and DEAT will partially subsidise the cost of grading for the first two years for small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs). I would also like to encourage SMMEs to take advantage of TEP's tourism awareness training. Tourism Enterprise Programme (TEP) also offers human resource management, financial management and general business management training to SMMEs.

This will assist them to provide the best possible service to their clients and ensure that the benefits to their businesses last well beyond the World Cup. As a department, we are investing over R170 million in the TEP over the next three years. This is an exponential increase on our prior contributions to TEP, and demonstrates our commitment to making these processes work for small businesses in our sector.

I have always believed that it is important to boost the number of graded accommodation establishments in South Africa, as this provides an incentive for improving and maintaining high service standards. I am very pleased to be witnessing the signing of a memorandum of understanding later this morning, which will consolidate co-operation between MATCH and the Tourism Grading Council.

This partnership will result in substantial legacy benefits for South Africa – in other words, benefits that outlast the World Cup Tournament. However, in order to meet the initial goal of providing World Cup visitors with quality assured accommodation, we will need to plan well in advance. In this regard, I would encourage property owners to do thorough research on sustainability beyond 2010, before undertaking major investments in anticipation of the event.

To assist in the planning process a series of workshops will be held, starting two weeks from now, explaining the MATCH contracts. These workshops will be held in each of the provinces to ensure that hotel and non-hotel accommodation establishments throughout the country are covered. The dates for these road shows are as follows:

Bloemfontein: 27 October (including Free State and Northern Cape)
Durban: 30 October - 1 November
Gauteng: 2 November
Rustenburg: 3 November
Mbombela: 6 November
Polokwane: 7 November
Western Cape: 8 - 9 November
Port Elizabeth: 10 November

SMMES will have the opportunity to obtain the contracts and actually sign them at the workshops. Accommodation contracted by MATCH will be marketed globally via the MATCH brochure and the http://www.fifa.com website. The coverage of provincial workshops will include satellite accommodation areas. This is a strategic move that will achieve the dual objectives of spreading tourism benefits beyond cities where matches are taking place and of providing spectators with an even wider range of accommodation options.

To this end, MATCH is aggressively pursuing their target of 55 000 rooms by 2010. I am confident that by working closely with our department, the tourism industry and other stakeholders, they will achieve or even exceed this target. The challenge is for us to maintain the momentum of this workshop and play our part in turning the dreams of 2010 into a reality that enriches South Africa and the continent.

Enquiries:
Riaan Aucamp
Cell: 083 778 9923