New partnership with travel safety app launched with Cape Town Tourism

STATEMENT BY THE CITY’S MAYORAL COMMITTEE MEMBER FOR ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES AND ASSET MANAGEMENT, ALDERMAN JAMES VOS.

Cape Town Tourism (CTT), the City’s official Destination Marketing and Management Organisation, has launched a new partnership with the exciting safety application, Namola. The app, which is free and available for download, provides quick access to an emergency operator and provides visitors with educational information on health and safety, with a particular focus on responsible travel. Read more below:

This partnership forms part of CTT’s TravelWise initiative. The main aim of the app is to give visitors and locals peace of mind wherever they may go in Cape Town. Namola is an app that pinpoints your location, immediately gives you an emergency operator to talk to, and gets you the help you need and does so speedily.

The app then uses the phone’s GPS location to tell nearby responders who you are and where you are. Trained operators will confirm details and dispatch help from near-by police, sentinels or other emergency officials.

‘As we start to welcome visitors back again, the safety of guests and our citizens remains a top priority for us.

‘We are proud of the partnership our official Destination Marketing and Management Organisation is launching with Namola. We facilitate year-round programmes focusing on the prevention of tourist and visitor safety incidents through community, stakeholder and enforcement engagements, and implement the use of technology to ensure a safer Cape Town,’ said Alderman James Vos, Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Opportunities and Asset Management.

‘Safety and security in Cape Town present a serious challenge when it comes to tourism in what is a popular destination for tourists and visitors. Now more than ever during these uncertain times, travellers and locals alike need to know that, while they are out and about in Cape Town, they have quick access to an emergency operator to get help should they need to. We have identified Namola as our preferred partner to help visitors and locals feel safe when in Cape Town. As regulations are eased and the tourism engine slowly restarts, we remain committed to ensuring our destination is safe and ready to welcome travellers again,’ said Enver Duminy, CEO CTT.

‘Together with CTT, the City has developed a tourism bounce back strategy so we can breathe life back into the tourism industry and plot a sustainable and inclusive future for this vital and vibrant sector. I will continue to fight for the unfettered reopening of this and the related sectors like food and beverages. This app is yet another impressive offering to ensure visitors and locals can enjoy all that our great city has to offer, safely and with peace of mind,’ said Alderman Vos.