City takes the fight to reopen leisure travel and tourism to President Ramaphosa

STATEMENT BY THE EXECUTIVE MAYOR OF CAPE TOWN, ALDERMAN DAN PLATO.

After receiving a briefing on the work done to get Cape Town’s tourism industry back on track, the Executive Mayor Alderman Dan Plato has written to President Cyril Ramaphosa to make a case for the reopening of the sector for leisure.

‘With our local economy on the verge of collapse, it is clear that we must be allowed to get back to work, particularly in the tourism, hospitality and related sectors. Hundreds of thousands of jobs are on the line and we cannot afford to wait any longer. That is why I have now written to the President to strongly urge him to allow the unfettered reopening of leisure tourism and related sectors , on the strict condition that all health and safety protocols are in place,’ said Mayor Plato.

Despite much confusion and uncertainty around whether or not leisure accommodation is allowed for intra-provincial travel, President Cyril Ramaphosa made no mention of the reopening of the tourism sector for leisure purposes in his address on Sunday night.

This request is not made lightly and especially since the country is now reaching the predicted peak of infections. This request is made on the basis of the extensive health and safety protocols already implemented by the industry for the reopening of the relevant sectors for business purposes.

Cape Town’s economy is highly reliant on tourism and related sectors for jobs and economic activity and we know, according to the latest information from Statistics South Africa, that the tourism sector added R18,1 billion to our economy and supported just over 113 000 jobs in 2018.

Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Opportunities and Asset Management, Alderman James Vos said: ‘I have made many bespoke submissions on this matter to my national counterpart, Minister of Tourism, Ms Kubayi-Ngubane, for the opening of the tourism industry.

‘Together with the City of Cape Town’s Destination Marketing Office and Cape Town Tourism, we have worked extensively on the tourism bounce back strategy to ensure that we breathe life back into the industry and plot a sustainable and inclusive future for this vital and vibrant sector. We can get on the road to readiness and recovery but only if we are allowed to reopen vital sectors while implementing the protocols needed to keep ourselves and others safe.’