State of tourism in KwaZulu-Natal Province: MEC Mabuyakhulu briefing

Meeting report

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Tourism on the provincial oversight visit to the Eastern Cape Province, dated 31 July 2015

Members effected minor spelling changes to the Report.

The Committee adopted the Report as amended.

KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) briefed the Committee on the state of tourism in the Province. The delegation comprised of amongst others Mr Michael Mabuyakhulu, Member of the Executive Committee (MEC) EDTEA, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Legislature; Mr Desmond Golding, Head of Department: EDTEA; Mr Ndabezitha Khoza Chief Executive Officer: EDTEA Department; and Mr Zeph Nhleko Deputy Director General: EDTEA Department.

Mr Mabuyakhulu kicked off proceedings by thanking the Committee for visiting the KwaZulu-Natal Province on oversight. The oversight visit had been fruitful and the EDTEA Department were tasked with following up on certain matters that had been raised by the Committee. The National Tourism Sector Strategy (NTSS) broadly defined what needed to be done on tourism. The KwaZulu-Natal Province however had its own Tourism Master Plan in terms of what it needed to do. It included all stakeholders such as local government and tourism associations etc.  The Master Plan had a 20-year horizon and was in line with the NTSS. Private sector’s input on tourism had to be enhanced.

Mr Golding continued with the actual briefing. Some of the EDTEA Department’s strategic objectives were to increase tourism Gross Domestic Product (GDP) levels. The KwaZulu-Natal Province contributed to 30% of total domestic tourism in SA. The intention was also to grow the levels of all foreign visitor arrivals and to increase tourism employment in the Province. Members were given insight into coordinating structures in the KwaZulu-Natal Province with detail on their composition, and what their objectives and their current status was. Some of the coordinating structures were a Provincial Tourism Committee, a Provincial Tourism Forum, a District Tourism Forum and a Local Tourism Forum.

The Committee was also provided with detail on the EDTEA Department’s community based projects. Some of the projects were the Bhambatha Lodge, the Ingodini Border Caves and the KwaMbonambi Wild Palace Lodge. However the KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Master Plan also identified a need for the development of key iconic/catalytic projects aimed at increasing the geographical spread of tourism products and ensuring that the Province continued to gain a competitive edge and remained the preferred destination. The catalytic/iconic projects included the Drakensberg Cable Car, the Isandlwana Development Precinct and the building of a International Convention Centre around the North Coast. The KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Master Plan recommended the establishment of a Tourism Development Fund for catalytic/iconic and community based projects.

The KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Master Plan also recognised beach tourism as one of the core experiences offered by the Province. The KwaZulu-Natal Province had an impressive 580km coastline. The Province identified the opportunities that cruise tourism could bring to the table. Transnet was to build a new cruise terminal in the port of Durban. The new terminal would be able to handle between 5000 and 6000 passengers. The idea was to have cruise liners traverse the seas between Durban and countries like Mauritius, the Seychelles and Mozambique. There was also the Durban KwaZulu-Natal Convention Bureau which was established in 2010 to host mega events. An airlift and route development strategy for King Shaka International Airport was part of the broader strategy to develop the Durban Aerotropolis or Dube airport city, which would be driven by a globally connected King Shaka International Airport. The KwaZulu-Natal Integrated Aerotropolis Strategy (IAS) recommended the development of a Durban Aerotropolis centred on King Shaka International Airport that spanned an area covering one-hour travel from the airport. The idea was for King Shaka International Airport to would become a hub for air travel. The EDTEA Department came up with a first mover concept that it negotiated with airlines to introduce. A route development strategy and a support programme for international connectivity was in place to support direct air connectivity from Durban to any hub of a major trading partner.

Mr Mabuyakhulu emphasised the need for transformation to take place in the tourism sector. The EDTEA Department pushed boundaries in as far as transformation in the tourism sector was concerned. Negotiations on tourism assets were ongoing. Ownership of assets had to vest with those who were previously disadvantaged. Tourism needed to be affordable and accessible to South Africans, hence the need to grow domestic tourism. The EDTEA Department had a comprehensive approach to tourism and work would continue.

Discussion

Ms S Xego-Sovita (ANC) said she had in previous meetings of the Committee been given reasons why in provinces cities were marketed on their own. It was perhaps true that in London not many people would be aware of the KwaZulu-Natal Province but would know about Durban. She asked for greater detail on the convention centre that was to be built around the area of the North Coast. She pointed out that when the Committee had gone on oversight to the KwaZulu-Natal Province and had visited the Isimangaliso Wetland Park there had been disputes between implementing agencies and communities. Apparently only some communities benefited. What could the EDTEA Department do to empower communities? There were issues around grazing land. She suggested that the tourism sector work hand in hand with other sectors like agriculture. She had also observed that some of the roads at Isimangaliso were not very pedestrian and cyclist friendly. Roads were narrow and signage was poor. She also made mention of a development that was earmarked around a historical battleground. There were however issues of land emerging. From the presentation it seemed as if a great deal was happening in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. Did the EDTEA Department have the capacity to gather its own data? She observed that many of the projects mentioned were located within district municipalities.

Mr Mabuyakhulu responded that there was a huge convention centre in Durban but another was needed. The building of another convention centre was planned for the North Coast. A strategic investor was needed to assist with the building of it. He was aware of the conflict between the Isimangaliso Wetland Park and communities. Meetings with municipalities, communities and Amakhosi were taking place. Claims in the area had been approved. Land for grazing was one of the issues. The problem was that livestock would be eaten by the wildlife. The Park was a World Heritage Site and it was important for everyone involved to deal with issues. Work was being done in coordination with the Minister of Environmental Affairs. He was also aware of the poor condition of roads and lack of signage. The matter was getting attention at provincial level. Hopefully the National Department of Tourism (NDT) could make resources available. He conceded that the only reliable source of data was StatsSA. However at the last Ministerial Member of Executive Committee (MinMEC) meeting the issue of data had been discussed. The problem was that disparities existed in the data. The KwaZulu-Natal Province’s data had shown hotel occupancy to have increased from 67% to 73% in the Province but the StatsSA data showed a decrease. It was agreed to look at the methodology used in coming up with the data. The Province considered itself to be ranked number one amongst provinces but StatsSA only ranked it at number three. He pointed out that sometimes StatsSA corrected its own data. Given the issues around data the KwaZulu-Natal Province decided to do its own data collection.    

Mr R Cebekhulu (IFP) said development was earmarked for Beaufort. What role did the EDTEA Department play in the development? What role did the EDTEA Department play on land issues with African traditional leaders? He also asked for detail on progress regarding the tombstones of African traditional leaders. He pointed out that signage to gravesites and on roads was not good. He asked for greater detail regarding the EDTEA Department stepping in to refurbish the Bhambatha Lodge. The EDTEA Department was asked to provide the Committee with figures on domestic and foreign visitors coming to KwaZulu-Natal Province.

Mr Mabuyakhulu said the EDTEA Department did try to assist on land issues with traditional leaders. The EDTEA Department did however try not to become involved in internal feuds. The EDTEA Department would be keen to assist at the right time. He conceded that not much effort had been put into signage and roads. It would however get more attention. The EDTEA Department focused more on marketing. The Bhambatha Lodge project had taken the community on board. The Lodge was built and the game park fenced. The problems had been that the Lodge had not been maintained. People stole from the Lodge itself and also stole wildlife. The EDTEA Department had managed to renovate the building and to get the wildlife back. Figures would be provided to the Committee in due course.  

Mr G Krumbock (DA) appreciated the effort that the EDTEA Department made in attending the meeting but he was disappointed with the presentation. The presentation did contain some useful information but it was not what he had expected. From what was presented the Committee had no idea how tourism was doing in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. The Committee should have been provided with figures. The only figure provided was that the KwaZulu-Natal Province contributed to 30% of total domestic tourism in SA. He asked what the figures for the KwaZulu-Natal Province were on domestic tourism. What was the growth? What was the trend line? What were the action plans of the EDTEA Department to achieve its objectives? No figures were provided on the numbers of trips or the numbers of tourists in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. There was also no information provided on which projects had succeeded or failed. The presentation given was very thematic. The Committee needed to be provided with figures. On Social Responsibility Implementation (SRI) projects there was also no indication of how many jobs had been created. On community based projects he felt that there was a huge difference when projects were funded by government to honour someone or where projects were undertaken to compete with private sector. On the Isandlwana Development Precinct he said the role of government should be to make improvements to roads and signage to improve access. Where were the graves of black persons who had died there? All that was being done was to build a conference centre. The private sector should be building a conference centre. At the KwaMbonambi Wild Place Lodge plans were in place to build a three-star country lodge and conference centre. Once again the private sector should be doing this. It was all good and well to wish to make Durban a first class destination. He was concerned that some of Durban’s beaches had lost their blue flag status. How many beaches had lost blue flag status? What could be done to get the blue flag statuses back?

Mr Krumbock referred to the last page of the presentation and noted that the EDTEA Department had lofty ideals. Statements were being made but once again no figures were given. He pointed out that the EDTEA Department’s budget for tourism had been cut. No econometric study had been done on what budget the EDTEA Department needed to do marketing and events. There were iconic resorts in the KwaZulu-Natal Province whose tourism numbers had declined. The reality was that in the KwaZulu-Natal Province roads were in a shocking condition and tourism places were not maintained. Even local government was not playing its part. The reality was that less was being done in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. The Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) needed to be taken into consideration. The next five years should be looked at for comparative purposes. The Committee needed actual figures. Pietermaritzburg should have been a tourist magnet for the KwaZulu-Natal Province given its history. It was a rubbish dump at present and needed to be cleaned up.

Mr Mabuyakhulu responded that the letter from the Committee had instructed the EDTEA Department on what the briefing should be about. The EDTEA Department could only respond on what it was requested to do. He respectfully responded that what Mr Krumbock was asking was not contained in the Committee letter. He felt that Mr Krumbock’s disappointment was misplaced. The EDTEA Department had with all due respect presented on what had been requested of it. He however did not have a problem with providing the Committee with a further report. If any gaps were to be found in such report the EDTEA Department would be happy to address them. On the assumption by Mr Krumbock that econometrics had not been done he stated that economic assessments had been done. He agreed that there were budget cuts but it did not disadvantage the EDTEA Department. Marketing efforts had not suffered due to the budget cuts. The EDTEA Department was even able to open up a desk at OR Tambo International Airport. The KwaZulu-Natal Province even had agreements with London and Germany. Not many provinces could say the same.

Ms L Makhubele-Mashele (ANC) asked for clarity on the business model that was used to fund projects. She noted that when disputes arose not much could be done as funds went into a trust. On tourism figures she pointed out that StatsSA had said that there was a decline. Recent events in SA and on the African continent had contributed towards the decline. The EDTEA Department was asked whether it had done a study on trends in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. What were the trends on domestic tourism? She noted that at local and district level municipalities’ tourism was on the periphery of importance. The fact that mayors in the KwaZulu-Natal Province were on board with the EDTEA Department’s plans was commendable. In many other provinces structures were often non functional. What was the strategy used by the EDTEA Department. 

Mr Mabuyakhulu noted that community based projects tend to collapse if they were not marketed properly. The EDTEA Department also tried to ensure that there was knowledge and skills. Community projects additionally required mentoring. Domestic tourism in the KwaZulu-Natal Province was not going down. It was the biggest recipient of domestic trips. According to others the Limpopo Province was the biggest recipient. On municipalities he said the EDTEA Department sat with district municipalities and secondary municipalities to discuss tourism issues. There was already a symbiotic relationship for coordination. 

Ms E Masehela (ANC) asked for figures on tourism’s contribution to jobs and Gross Domestic Product of the KwaZulu-Natal Province. The work being done by the EDTEA Department on tour guides was commendable.

Mr Mabuyakhulu responded that tourism’s contribution towards the KwaZulu-Natal Province’s GDP was between 8% and 10%. Tourism contributed 16% towards the GDP of SA.

The Chairperson agreed that signage was a problem in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. She asked in how many languages the KwaZulu-Natal Province promoted itself and SA in. It was important for the KwaZulu-Natal Province to do an econometric study. The study would speak to the performance of the KwaZulu-Natal Province. She pointed out that when the Committee had been briefed by the Isimangaliso Wetland Park Members were informed that at Lake St Lucia 6000 jobs had been created compared to 450 jobs that would have been created if titanium mining had gone ahead. The EDTEA Department was asked what impact had tourism buddies had and what had been the benefit to them. She suggested that the Committee invite other provinces to brief the Committee as well to get an idea of what was happening on tourism in provinces. The Committee needed a consolidated idea of what was happening on tourism in provinces. Both Kenya and Turkey had improved its tourism using domestic tourism.   

Mr Mabuyakhulu explained that the EDTEA Department provided the stage for actors to do their thing. He said that it was good to learn certain languages like Mandarin, Portuguese, Russian and even Arabic. On jobs the target had been set at 183 000 by 2030. The idea of tourism buddies originated in 2010 when the need for tourism ambassadors was identified. The EDTEA Department had started a training programme. In 2012 the NDT had taken over the programme. A total of 65% of trained persons got absorbed. There was however limited capacity to absorb people.

Mr Khoza said that in the KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Master Plan the figure on jobs was roughly 140 000. The figure currently was 146 000.

The Chairperson said that figures on jobs created could be emailed to members.

The Committee agreed to invite other provinces to brief members on the progress that they made on tourism.

The meeting was adjourned.