Daily Archives: March 6, 2025

G20 Tourism Group Meeting agrees on four priorities for 2025

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By REGINALD KANYANE

6 March 2025- South Africa hosted a successful first G20 Tourism Working Group meeting virtually from the Head Office of the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) today. The Director General of the South African Department of Tourism, Victor Vele who chaired the first Tourism Working Group meeting which was attended by senior officials and experts in the tourism sector of the G20 countries, invited guest countries and international organisations, said delegates deliberated on and agreed to work on four priorities for the year.

Vele said they will be working on People-Centered Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Innovation to enhance Travel and Tourism Start-Ups and SMMEs, Tourism Financing and Investment to Enhance Equality and Promote Sustainable Development, Air Connectivity for Seamless Travel, and Enhanced Resilience for Inclusive, Sustainable Tourism Development. He said the meeting was the first of a series of engagements that will take place throughout the year, ahead of the G20 Tourism Ministers’ Meeting in September 2025.

Minister of Tourism, Patricia de Lille welcomed the delegates through a video-recorded message.

Dellie said: “South Africa is excited to welcome all G20 delegates, member states and organisations to our beautiful country and proud to host the G20 for the first time on African soil. As you convene during the first Tourism Working Group, I implore all delegates to focus on how we can use tourism to change people’s lives, communities and the world.”

Vele further said the Tourism Working Group will exchange knowledge and best practices among the member countries with a view of crafting actionable deliverables. He added that the Tourism Working Group is among the 16 working groups of the G20 during South Africa’s Presidency focusing on solidarity, equality and sustainability.

“As the first African country to preside over the G20 presidency, South Africa is utilising its term to drive a developmental agenda to benefit the African continent. Going forward, the G20 Tourism Meetings are planned in South Africa to discuss the 2nd G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting – from 11 till 13 May 2025, KwaZulu Natal Province, 3rd G20 Tourism Working Group Meeting – from 10 till 11 September 2025, Mpumalanga Province, G20 Tourism Ministers’ Meeting – on 12 September 2025, Mpumalanga Province.

“The G20 economies represent around 85% of the global gross domestic product (GDP), over 75% of the global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population. In 2023, the G20 welcomed 69% of all international tourists and accounted for 71% of tourism exports worldwide. In 2023 Tourism Direct GDP reached 3.1% of the G20 economies,” said Vele.

He said Tourism plays a critical role in the global economy and is one of the vital economic sectors contributing significantly to socio-economic development, but it remains vulnerable to natural and manmade hazards. Vele said for many countries, the tourism economy is growing faster than most other economic sectors.

“With its extensive value chain and labour absorption capacity, it is acknowledged as a tool for inclusive economic development, playing a significant role in responding to socioeconomic challenges. Tourism is an important economic sector in Africa. In 2023 the continent’s, Tourism direct gross domestic product reached 85 US billion representing 3.5% of the region’s GDP.

“This value is still below the pre-pandemic US billion 94 reached in 2019 (4.3% share). The challenges facing the African travel and tourism sector include air connectivity, limited investments, financing for tourism development, positioning and marketing, social and environmental sustainability, as well as safety and security amongst others,” he said.

He said South Africa’s tourism priorities for the 2025 G20 Presidency are aligned with the continental priorities as expressed in Agenda 2063 as well as with the core objectives contained in the UN Tourism Agenda for Africa – Tourism for Inclusive Growth, the strategic roadmap guiding the promotion of sustainable tourism development across the African continent. Vele said this meeting also appreciated South Africa’s intention to build on the efforts and successes of the last three G20 Presidencies of the Global South and to champion Africa’s developmental agenda.

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Spare no effort to defuse ticking youth unemployment time bomb

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Picture: The ANC Chief Whip in North West Provincial Legislature, Motlalepula Rosho/Supplied  

By OBAKENG MAJE

6 March 2025- The African National Congress (ANC) Chief Whip in the North West Provincial Legislature, Motlalepula Rosho on Tuesday urged the provincial government not to spare any effort to defuse the ticking time bomb of youth unemployment. Rosho called for rigorous economic transformation programmes that will revitalise industrial sites to be implemented in order to address unemployment among youth that is standing at 52.4%, the highest in the country, during the State of the Province Address (SOPA) debate in the provincial legislature.

She further said these sites possess the efficient ability to accelerate the creation of an enabling environment for investment in improved manufacturing competitiveness, which remains the most reliable sustained employment creator with the highest jobs

multiplier. Rosho added that, the State-owned Enterprises (SoEs) must be repositioned to contribute towards job creation as part of the Provincial Growth and Development Strategy that focuses on mining, agriculture and tourism to stimulate economic growth and development.

“The turnaround strategy of SoEs must realise return on investment for an inclusive economy that benefits everyone particularly women, youth and people with disabilities.

“The North West Development Cooperation (NWDC) must fully exploit job creation opportunities across the province as part of full realisation of its mandate with manufacturing as a priority sector,” she said.

Rosho also expressed concern regarding the delayed establishment of the Bojanala Special Economic Zone, which has the potential to create 15 000 job opportunities for the unemployed in the Moses Kotane Local Municipalities and surrounding areas. She assured the people of the North West that the government’s programme of action announced last Thursday by the North West Premier, Lazarus Mokgosi in his SOPA, will be closely monitored on how many jobs it will create.

“The POA’s priority must be more jobs and nothing less but more jobs. We do not have the luxury not to deliver on this priority.

“The ANC-led government must through the critical interventions create new and sustainable jobs, by continuing the engagement with the private sector on job creation, to contribute to the provincial efforts to reduce and create employment opportunities for communities,” said Rosho.

She said engagement with the agricultural sector, mines, private business and all stakeholders must be pursued to create conditions that will enable small businesses to emerge, grow, access new markets as well as create new products and more sustainable employment opportunities for young people. Rosho said beneficiation of the mineral resources will reverse decades of an extraction economy that has not contributed much to creating local jobs to address the triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and equality.

“We welcome the opening of a newly refurbished Gold Processing Plant at Orkney, which forms part of the R9 billion investment by China Africa Precious Metals aimed at creating and preserving 10 000 jobs.

“The support provided to youth owned enterprises, with financial and non-financial business development interventions through the National Youth Development Agency Grant Programme, should be buttressed with expansion and allocation of more funds to capacitate SMME’s,” she underscored.

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