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Tourism board changes strategy
Posted on: Friday, 06 August 2004. Article source: Daily Dispatch
The Eastern Cape Tourism Board intends to become more focused on destinations rather than marketing routes, the acting chief executive officer Vijay Makangee said.
The board, which took its recently- completed strategic plan to the Legislature tourism committee, outlined the shift in emphasis from selling routes to marketing specific destinations.
"Route marketing covers a lot of areas and many places get an extra shake as they are parts of a number of the routes on which the board has been concentrating," Makangee said in a recent interview.
The board would concentrate on very specific areas of the province rather than generically dealing with sections of the province such as the Sunshine Coast, Wild Coast or the N6 national road.
The strategic plan was drawn up with the help of Gareth Coleman, former head of tourism in KwaZulu Natal.
The plan will be a blueprint for the yet-to-be-appointed board's new CEO to follow, and the implementation of it is expected to be an important part of the successful candidate's contract.
The board's internal structure is also expected to undergo a number of changes, with more emphasis being placed on financial control, marketing and developing a sound research base.
A number of the regional offices are expected to be closed and information centres placed in areas where there is not only a need for them but where there is sufficient traffic to justify the expense.
"Places like the bungee jump at the Blaauwkranz River has an office and there is not a lot of tourist traffic through there, but the nearby Storms River bridge has a lot more people coming through and would provide a perfect gateway to the Eastern Cape," Makangee said.
The ECTB was also looking at a new site for its information office in Umtata as well as the closure of the office at the Kei River.
The search for a new chief executive is continuing and more than 160 applications are being sorted through to find suitable candidates.
A process to select a short list is expected to take place some time next week, Economic Affairs, Environment and Tourism MEC Andre de Wet said.
The board, which took its recently- completed strategic plan to the Legislature tourism committee, outlined the shift in emphasis from selling routes to marketing specific destinations.
"Route marketing covers a lot of areas and many places get an extra shake as they are parts of a number of the routes on which the board has been concentrating," Makangee said in a recent interview.
The board would concentrate on very specific areas of the province rather than generically dealing with sections of the province such as the Sunshine Coast, Wild Coast or the N6 national road.
The strategic plan was drawn up with the help of Gareth Coleman, former head of tourism in KwaZulu Natal.
The plan will be a blueprint for the yet-to-be-appointed board's new CEO to follow, and the implementation of it is expected to be an important part of the successful candidate's contract.
The board's internal structure is also expected to undergo a number of changes, with more emphasis being placed on financial control, marketing and developing a sound research base.
A number of the regional offices are expected to be closed and information centres placed in areas where there is not only a need for them but where there is sufficient traffic to justify the expense.
"Places like the bungee jump at the Blaauwkranz River has an office and there is not a lot of tourist traffic through there, but the nearby Storms River bridge has a lot more people coming through and would provide a perfect gateway to the Eastern Cape," Makangee said.
The ECTB was also looking at a new site for its information office in Umtata as well as the closure of the office at the Kei River.
The search for a new chief executive is continuing and more than 160 applications are being sorted through to find suitable candidates.
A process to select a short list is expected to take place some time next week, Economic Affairs, Environment and Tourism MEC Andre de Wet said.
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