They say statistics don’t lie. And it’s certainly true for the tourism sector, which defied an uncertain economic conditions to create almost 48, 000 jobs in 2015.
And given the problems the country is facing with taming rising unemployment (more especially amongst the youth), there are immense opportunities to be had in the tourism sector for discerning entrepreneurs, Enver Mally, Chair of Cape Town Tourism, says.
Just to demonstrate how vital the tourism industry is, Mally points out: “The tourism industry employs about 4.4% of all people employed in SA, and one in 12 jobs is in tourism.”
“The growth in tourism is not nearly enough to provide a solution for all of the unemployment woes facing the country. Obviously not everyone can work in the tourism sector. That said, however, there are many opportunities for enterprising, hardworking individuals to make a place for themselves in the tourism industry,” he stresses.
Mally view the tourism industry as an avenue for inclusive growth, especially where big businesses can empower start-ups by previously disadvantaged individuals.
“A good idea can become a fully-fledged business plan and it may not require a large capital investment to become a working business. In tourism, human capital is important – the service offered by individuals to visitors is of potential greater value to the visitors than, say, commodities, for example.
“These smaller businesses are under no obligation to assist each other, but the tourism sector is quite unusual in that you see bigger companies helping out SMEs. There’s a camaraderie that seeks to support others and provide mentoring.”
