Chairperson, we are taking Tourism to the people. The year 2010 was the busiest on the national Department of Tourism calendar. It was also a year in which we launched the draft National Tourism Sector Strategy, NTSS. The fact that the NTSS has now been approved by the government for implementation gives us the marching orders to implement plans of creating jobs, growing our product base and contributing to the country's gross domestic product, GDP.
The department wishes to focus on its approach towards domestic tourism. This is because, and we agree with you, Mma Njobe, it forms the backbone of every successful tourism destination, and it creates jobs, reduces the impact of seasonality and increases the geographic spread. South Africa has a lot of potential in this regard. The department will work with the industry and other partners to develop a comprehensive strategy to take advantage of the existing untapped domestic market. This will further enhance the Sho't Left domestic tourism campaign, which has been highly successful within the targeted market segment. A clear directive has been given to SA Tourism to sharpen that focus and grow the domestic tourism contribution to the tourism economy.
With regard to our contribution to job creation, we have realised that unemployment and poverty remain two of the main challenges affecting South Africans. Tourism has the potential to contribute to economic growth. In 2009, the tourism direct contribution to employment was over 538 000 jobs and it contributed more than a million jobs directly and indirectly. The Minister indicated earlier what contribution we will make to full-time equivalent jobs through the internal programmes in the department.
Last year we also reported that the national Department of Tourism, together with the Tourism Business Council of South Africa, TBCSA, embarked on a survey to measure the state of transformation in the tourism sector in the country. I am pleased to announce that the study has been completed and the final report is ready to be released. The report will show how businesses in the tourism sector have responded to black economic empowerment and to what extent they comply with the targets as set out in the tourism charter. South Africa will soon have a tool to measure how the South African tourism industry has implemented broad-based black economic empowerment.
The focus in this financial year will be on putting in place a system for monitoring compliance with BEE rating by tourism enterprises, as well as reporting on the number of organs of state that report on levers they use to drive transformation in the sector.
Last year we had our first women in tourism forum and we identified the key challenges facing women in tourism which inhibit their meaningful participation as owners and decision-makers. It is time for women to be advanced in their role, to become decision-makers in the tourism sector. We are now rolling out a mentorship programme to respond to some of the challenges that we identified in the forum and there will be ongoing national interaction with these women.
Hon Chairperson, during the year under review the national Department of Tourism will embark on a process of reviewing and accelerating the implementation of the National Tourism Human Resource Development Strategy in partnership with all relevant stakeholders. The department is liaising with institutions of higher learning and ensuring that relevant accredited skills development programmes are developed to equip educators with relevant information and knowledge in order to enhance their understanding of the tourism sector and enable them to impart relevant information to the learners.
A review of the skills audit will be conducted and will provide a concise picture of current skills available and the skills gaps. It will also identify critical skills that should be prioritised and acquired urgently. It is also envisaged that the report will indicate the number of South Africans and non-South Africans who are employed. This is critical in order for us to know if we are making an impact on the unemployment rate.
The department will continue with the placement of unemployed tourism graduates in the hospitality industry in order to provide them with the relevant experience so as to be able to increase their competitiveness in the labour market. The existing partnership with the Ubuntu Institute, the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa, Prasa, the Services Seta and CathsSeta will be maintained in placing our young people within the hospitality industry.
Last year, the partners received positive feedback from the learners who were placed at the Ritz Carlton Hotels and Resorts in Canada. May I just take this opportunity to read what one of the beneficiaries of that programme, Nakedi Matji, wrote to us, titled "Thank you for honouring my dream":
Firstly, I would like to take this moment to thank you, Ubuntu Institute, for giving me this opportunity to come to Canada to pursue my career. Your contribution is truly appreciated. I am currently working as a guest relations host and I cannot imagine trading it for anything else. I have been with the Ubuntu Institute team for a year and I know how much effort you put to make sure you change someone's life into a positive living.
[Applause.]
Hon Chairperson, I am also pleased to announce that the department is implementing a three-year national youth chef training programme targeting 800 unemployed youth. Today, two of them from the Western Cape are here in the gallery to grace us with their presence. [Applause.]
We came up with this number in consultation with the provincial departments and local municipalities. Also, it depends on the availability of training providers in the provinces and the demand at the provincial level, as well as the availability of places for experiential training.
The national Department of Tourism relies on capable and recognised organisations as partners, and we are pleased to be working with the South African Chefs Association on this initiative. We believe that this partnership will provide the trainees with the skills, knowledge and experience to gain sustainable employment in the hospitality industry, as well as in the tourism industry. We expect that one day they will become leaders and innovators in their own right.
In collaboration with both the Department of Basic Education and of Higher Education and Training, we will review the relevance of the tourism curriculum offered by the various institutions in meeting the demands of the industry.
As part of rural tourism, we regard the development of rural areas as a priority. It is a priority for the government and for rural tourism development to have a significant pro-poor impact on communities. An effective strategy, consisting of strategic interventions by government that allow our poor people better access to revenues accruing in the tourism market, is in the process of development.
The rural tourism strategy will be aligned with that of the national Department of Rural Development and Land Reform, which is already in place. During this current financial year the department intends to support more than more 530 rural enterprises and train people in them regarding tourism awareness, customer service and toolkits.
Our enterprise support entails SMMEs facilitating a rapid infusion of tourism spend in the local tourism economy. Many of these require direct support from government to grow and expand. It is for this reason that we will continue our co-operation with the Business Trust in the implementation of the Tourism Enterprise Partnership.
With regard to our niche tourism and heritage tourism, which are part of our growing and expanding tourism industry, we have partnered with the Department of Trade and Industry to develop a national niche tourism framework that will assist us with the effective management and development of niche tourism markets.
International tourism trends are increasingly showing that travellers are seeking authentic and memorable experiences through a meaningful connection with local people. A draft strategy for the further development and packaging of heritage tourism is being developed by the department.
The national Department of Tourism has also identified universal accessibility as an important initiative to enhance Africa's competitiveness. It will spearhead the finalisation of the universal accessibility action plan which will outline the roles and responsibilities of the different stakeholders. Currently, the existing legislation on universal accessibility in relation to the tourism sector is based on the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Disability Rights Charter of South Africa.
This market is targeting revenue generated, and South African stakeholders have identified this universal access, UA, market as a possible future market since the UA market includes senior citizens, a sector which, according to the recent report by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, UNWTO, is gradually increasing. It therefore makes economic sense, whilst it is also socially acceptable.
Our vision for the National Tourism Sector Strategy stipulates that we want to be amongst the top 20 destinations by the year 2020. However, South Africa does not currently have an integrated approach to service excellence. There is a myriad of initiatives that are not integrated into one strategy for the country and there is therefore a need to consolidate all efforts and come out with a strategy that will guide service excellence in the sector.
We have initiated a programme in partnership with the Tourism Business Council of SA that is aimed at creating an environment that enables the development of a good customer service culture and ensures that all key stakeholders in the sector play a role in ensuring that the objectives of the programme are met. The department, in consultation with the South African Bureau of Standards and the industry, will finalise the development of norms and standards for service excellence, which will be utilised by the industry as a guide in assessing and improving their levels and standards of service. [Time expired.] Thank you, hon members. [Applause.]