Programme Director;
The Chairperson of the KwaZulu-Natal Tourism Authority, Mr Sadda Naidoo;
The CEO of Tourism KwaZulu-Natal, Mr Ndabo Khoza;
Esteemed representatives from the tourism industry;
Distinguished guests;
Ladies and gentlemen;
All protocol observed.
On behalf of the government of KwaZulu-Natal and the people of this province, it gives us great pleasure to be part of this auspicious occasion where we are gathered to honoured those who have blazed a trail of excellence in the tourism industry in our province.
Programme Director, human behaviour means that we all revel in the appreciation of others for pushing the envelope in whatever field of human endeavour. A public display of recognition and appreciation for a job well done gives us a wonderful sense of achievement; a sense of satisfaction. The 'feel-good factor' is unquestionably important to all of us. It is for this reason, ladies and gentlemen, that we feel especially honoured to stand before you today, as we come together to recognise and reward service excellence in KwaZulu-Natal's tourism sector.
The national Lilizela Tourism Awards programme is an initiative of the national Department of Tourism and was launched by the Minister of Tourism, Mr Marthinus van Schalkwyk, at this year’s annual Tourism Indaba, here in Durban. Spearheaded by South African Tourism at a national level and supported by provincial authorities, the Lilizela Tourism Awards bring together, on a single platform, a myriad of award events related to celebrating tourism successes in South Africa. 2013 marks the inaugural staging of this single and consolidated recognition programme.
In this regard we wish to stress that we, in KwaZulu-Natal, are no strangers to recognising and rewarding success in the tourism sector. Indeed, our province has played a leading role in showing its appreciation to role-players who excel in our provincial tourism sector. As long ago as 2002, Tourism KwaZulu-Natal initiated an incentive awards programme as part of its efforts to improve the overall service delivery by tourism-related enterprises throughout our province.
This culminated in the inaugural Zulu Kingdom Service Excellence Awards event, first held in Durban in March 2003. The objective of this annual event was to encourage and reward service excellence, so promoting improved products and, thus, enhanced tourist experiences.
The desired spin-offs of such recognition included increased tourism arrivals and repeat visits, sustainable tourism development and the promotion of employment opportunities. We are pleased to support the Lilizela Tourism Awards initiative, uniting behind and becoming an integral part of this new national umbrella awards programme, which will bring welcome consistency and uniformity to efforts to reflect the excellence which drives the tourism sector in South Africa. We, accordingly, greatly look forward to showcasing on the national stage today's provincial winners who have worked so tirelessly and passionately to assist in making KwaZulu-Natal one of the world’s preferred tourist destinations of choice.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Lilizela Tourism Awards - at both provincial and national levels - aims to recognise and celebrate excellence in tourism. The overriding goal is to encourage key role-players in the sector to continuously strive for excellence as a means of improving both our province's and country’s global competitiveness. We must - and, indeed – should reward those within the sector who deliver excellence and, importantly, are eager to motivate the entire industry to aspire to the highest levels of quality in their day-to-day tourism business activities. It is imperative that we develop widespread awareness about the sheer value and importance of our tourism sector.
We must come to realise that tourism is a global phenomenon and that we have a distinct interest in growing our share of this phenomenon. Although hugely competitive, this is one of the very few real growth industries today. In fact, tourism is one of the fastest-growing industries in the world, in spite of residual economic concerns in many parts of the world. This is a multi-billion dollar industry, involving the to-and-fro movement of hundreds of millions of people annually. Against this background, we must understand that tourism - especially here, in South Africa generally and KwaZulu-Natal specifically - has emerged to become a major driver of economic growth and development.
This is a sector which can and must have a far-reaching economic impact. This is a sector which has tremendous potential for the attraction of foreign direct spend and attendant increase in jobs in South Africa.
The growth in tourism is best explained by the fact that people are becoming more affluent, enjoy more leisure time with paid holidays, benefit from improvements in technology, react to increasing numbers of choices and, critically, are showing great desire to visit new destinations. Critically, too, there exists far greater awareness than at any time in the past of how and where people may spend their leisure time.
Accordingly, tourism has been identified as one of six key priority sectors in South Africa for economic growth and investment and with good reason... our country's tourism sector is one of the best-performing globally. Last year international arrivals in South Africa displayed exceptional growth of 10,2%, more than double the United Nations World Tourism Organisation's global tourist growth average estimate of just 4%. Such outstanding growth in tourism here makes it quite evident that we expanding our traditional, core markets and have also attracted significant interest from a range of new markets.
According to annual tourism statistics released recently by President Jacob Zuma, 2012 saw a total of 9,2 million international tourists visit South Africa, against 8,3 million the previous year. These statistics provide a clear reflection of South Africa's new-found prominence as a desirable tourist destination. The desirability of South Africa and, in particular, our region of KwaZulu-Natal, should come as no surprise, however.
Ours is an idyllic destination and one which we are eager to share with the world. In particular, KwaZulu-Natal's scenic natural beauty, wonderfully warm climate and year-round sunny weather, cultural diversity and a well-deserved reputation for the delivery of value-for money tourist experiences of note, makes ours one of the fastest developing leisure and business tourism destinations anywhere.
We are greatly blessed to have so many attributes; tourism experiences which afford our province a distinct competitive advantage. However, we must sound a word of caution here. These wonderful attributes, the vast array of experiences we offer our visitors and the competitive advantage we enjoy will come to nought unless we are able to deliver world class service excellence in every facet of the sector and for the benefit of every single tourist - local or foreign - visiting our shores.
We have the world-class attractions, infrastructure, accommodation and cuisine. We have the game, adventure, sport, cultural diversity and history which tourists to South Africa crave. We have exceptional year-round warmth. We know it, our fellow citizens from beyond KwaZulu-Natal's borders know it and, increasingly, international travellers, too, are coming to know it.
They all want to experience it, but without impeccable service throughout the tourism sector, few will visit and still fewer will bother to return again. Negative experiences undoubtedly have the effect of turning people away and, worse, they will tell many others of their poor service encounters, further exacerbating 'stay-away' thinking.
Who would conceivably risk a ruined holiday having been warned of the pitfalls associated with a particular destination by others whose fingers had already been burned?
We are well aware of the need that we, in South Africa generally and KwaZulu-Natal specifically, must do everything in our power to expose as many industry role-players and tourists to our part of the world as possible if we are to grow our market share.
However, we must equally come to understand that with so many exotic and interesting destinations around the world, tourists are spoilt for choice and have become increasingly exacting in their expectations and demand for good service standards in exchange for the hard-earned money they expend on their trips.
Adherence to the best practice service ideal will, however, assist in clinching our competitiveness on the world stage. Superb service is the key element which will keep tourists coming back for more and for those same tourists recommending to others that they too should visit.
This is something on which we can and must capitalise into the future. Tourism is a composite of accommodation, attractions, transportation, travel organisations and destination organisations and positive experiences across this spectrum transform satisfied consumers into ambassadors for our destination, recommending it to family and friends.
The tourism sector here is often cited as a major economic driver and the creator of jobs. However, if KwaZulu-Natal is to be competitive and a leader in the field, then without question, quality, hospitality and service must be the watchwords we hold sacrosanct.
We believe rewards to be critical in developing a culture of exceptional customer service in our Provincial tourism environment. In essence, people in our industry need to know that there is real value in changing and adapting to a customer-first culture. Re-inforcing such behavioural change with rewards and recognition is an effective means of telling people that they are doing the right thing and makes them feel good when they do. That, then, is the importance of today's provincial Lilizela Tourism Awards ceremony and next month's national function.
We, in KwaZulu-Natal, plan to utilise the provincial tier of the Lilizela Tourism Awards as a platform to recognise and celebrate leaders in tourism, transformation within the sector, top tourism products in our province and uniquely KwaZulu-Natal experiences. These awards are designed to inspire industry role-players to be the very best they can be, opening the door to a celebration of top-flight professionalism, creativity and innovation in our exciting business sector.
Ours is an exceptional tourist paradise and we are most fortunate that our array of experiences guarantee us 'have-it-all' status. However, we must up the ante to make sure of our destination's competitiveness in the global context and to do this we must place great value in the delivery of service excellence. Paying mere lip service to the service ethic will see our region sliding backwards in the stakes to attract an increased share of the tourist market.
In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, the difference between business success and failure in the tourism sector comes down to three words: Loyalty, Reputation and Ratings. Surely, there can be no better way to build customer loyalty in the tourism and hospitality industry than by providing exceptional customer service. Common sense tells us that visitors who are treated with respect and are made to feel important and welcome will return.
Likewise, poor customer service will give tourism and hospitality enterprises a bad reputation. Visitors will decide on alternative options so as to avoid the prospect of a bad trip. It is worth remembering that just one poor review can be devastating for any business in the tourism industry.
At the end of the day, we all tend to rate the customer service we have received in any setting or environment. The tourism sector is no different... visitors will rate their accommodation, the food they eat, the facilities they frequent and the experiences to which they are exposed. To that end, let's remember that customer-care is the backbone of the tourism industry and it plays - and will always play - a critical role in the growth and development of this vital economic sector.
In closing, we would, on behalf of the Provincial Government and the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, congratulate today's award winners. We take this opportunity to wish you every success in the national element of the inaugural Lilizela Tourism Awards which are to be held next month.
May you do KwaZulu-Natal proud.
I thank you.
