Top local and international tourism leaders are billed to speak at the inaugural South African Travel and Tourism Industry Summit.
Dubbed “The Summit”, the conference is a joint initiative of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA), its affiliate associations and Gauteng Tourism, sponsored by the country’s destination marketing organization – South African Tourism. 

  TBCSA affiliate associations are: the Southern African Tourism Services Associations (SATSA); the Southern African Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (SAVRALA); the Association of South African Travel Agents (ASATA); the Federated Hospitality Association of Southern Africa (FEDHASA) and the National Accommodation Association of South Africa (NAA-SA).

TBCSA CEO Mmatšatši Ramawela explained that the aim of the conference is to provide a national platform for top-level dialogue, decision making and action planning across the entire travel and tourism value chain.

Based on the theme “The Value of the Traveller”, the Summit is expected to provide delegates with valuable insights on developments in the local and international tourism landscape and provide a platform for them to influence the outcomes and action plans for the sector.

Headlining the conference will be the former CEO of Destination Australia, Chris Buckingham, as well as the Chief Marketing Officer for Destination Melbourne, Kelly Monger, who will give global perspective industry developments and engage delegates on the Melbourne model as a potential blueprint for the marketing and management of “City Regions” as tourism economies and destinations.

Deputy Minister of Tourism in South Africa, Ms. Tokozile Xasa will give the keynote address based on the conference theme. Other notable speakers include:

·         Monwabisi Kalawe, CEO of SA Airways

·         Thulani Nzima, CEO of SA Tourism

·         Luke McKend, CEO of Google SA

·         Ross Kata, CEO of Expedia SA

·         Dion Chang, CEO of Fluxtrends 

 “Looking at the conference programme and caliber of speakers we have lined-up, there is no doubt in my mind that this is a Summit not to be missed, says Gauteng Tourism CEO, Dawn Robertson. “We want to encourage all our industry stakeholders, professionals, commentators and officials from all spheres of government to make sure that they register and confirm their attendance”.

The conference registration fee is R1500.00 per delegate. To download the conference programme and register visit The Summit website: www.sasummit.net