House Chairperson, hon Minister of Tourism, Mr Van Schalkwyk, other Ministers here present, Deputy Ministers, chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Tourism, Mr Gumede, members of this House, our new director-general, the leadership of the department, our captains of industry as well as our quests today, indeed tourism unites us. It is not very common for us to speak the same language as the members on the opposite side.
The success of the tourism sector in our country will be measured by the extent to which it changes the living conditions of our people, in particular the rural poor and the designated groups, as well as the extent to which they also participate in the development and enjoyment of tourism.
This has led to a renewed approach on how we develop tourism in South Africa and in the department, putting emphasis on the development of rural tourism; on intensifying the implementation of the second phase of the Expanded Public Works Programme, EPWP; on rolling out the tourism component of the national youth development programme; on the development of entrepreneurial and other critical skills; and on the acceleration of the transformation of the sector.
Looking into the implementation of our Expanded Public Works Programme and the creation of decent work, we need to say that decent work creation and poverty alleviation are two key priorities for our country and government during this electoral mandate period. We will make our contribution to these areas, and believe that this will contribute to the improvement of people's livelihoods and the restoration of their dignity.
Through the implementation of the tourism sector component of the EPWP, the equivalent of a total of 46 399 full-time jobs will be created over the electoral mandate period. These jobs will be created through the roll-out of projects aimed at the development of tourism, some of which are what the hon Zikalala was referring to. These include the improvement of our infrastructure and product development.
By design, the designated majority of beneficiaries will be women, youth and people with disabilities who will also receive accredited training aimed at capacitating them for future opportunities. At this point I wish to draw the attention of the House to the fact that, in our recruitment of new staff, we are looking at a target of 5% of our staff being people with disabilities over this period. [Applause.]
Looking at rural development, one of the major priorities for the current term of government is the development of our rural areas, which is what the hon members have been harping on about. The department sees this as an opportunity to diversify the country's product base. It is our sincere belief that South Africa's rural areas, in particular, offer a unique experience that cannot be found anywhere else in the world.
It is also our view that tourism development can serve as a catalyst for infrastructure development in rural areas. It is also a fact that the majority of poor South Africans live in these areas and most of them are women, who are often the breadwinners in their respective households. The lives of those in these households must change for the better and, whilst we are not under any illusion that tourism is a panacea in this regard, we believe that we can make a contribution.
In line with the available resources, the department is prioritising the development of five rural-based products during the financial year. This will take into account the culture and heritage of these areas. Part of the strategy is to package and promote existing rural-based products across the country. [Applause.] We are also biased towards rural areas in terms of the roll-out of the Tourism Enterprise Partnership programme. In this financial year, of the 10 enterprises that will be supported to start up through the Tourism Enterprise Partnership programme, eight will be rural based. [Applause.]
Looking at skills development, we regard the development of education as a critical success factor for any nation. For this reason, it has been identified as a major priority of government for this mandate period. It is only through education that there will be suitability of our developmental efforts. As a service-based sector, South Africa's tourism sector's success depends on the availability of a skilled and capacitated workforce with a true conviction of service excellence. The department has identified specific critical and scarce skills across the sector's value chain and will implement specific interventions to close this gap. In this financial year, the department intends to facilitate the training of 150 chefs to alleviate a shortage in this area, particularly with regard to black chefs. Special attention will also be given to the overall implementation of the sector's human resource development strategy.
Working together with the Department of Education, we will ensure that the curriculum at schools aligns with the needs of our sector. This will be supported by establishing a partnership with industry to create opportunities for experiential learning educators. We will continue to host the National Tourism Careers Expo to showcase the opportunities and various career paths available to the youth of our country. In the last financial year, we attracted over 12 000 participants, largely Grade 12 learners.
The department is currently conducting tourism service excellence training for 2010 and beyond in all nine provinces. This commenced in April and we expect it to be complete on 2 June. This training is aimed at improving customer service at all service touch points in the sector, with a view to transforming this country into a globally competitive service economy and the world's destination of choice, in line with our vision to be globally celebrated as a destination of choice.
In this regard, we also want to be celebrated as a leader in tourism excellence. Some of this includes staff at public and private-sector touch points, such as ports of entry, restaurants, hotels, transport, the SA Police Service and the SA Revenue Service. The aim is to train up to 250 000 frontline staff.
I must emphasise that service excellence is not just a performance area for us, but part of our values and one that is critical for the sustainability of our sector. Over the medium-term period, the department, in partnership with the Department of Higher Education and Training, will establish a centre of excellence for tourism training. This will be the first of its kind in South Africa. We envisage that this will grow into a regional centre of excellence over the next 10 years.
The department will also be engaging the industry in a study to establish the profiles of the actual jobs we have created in the tourism industry. This is to clarify who the beneficiaries of such jobs are and the impact these interventions have on unemployment in the country.
Looking at enterprise development, our small, macro and medium enterprises, SMMEs, comprise the majority of enterprises in the tourism sector. Many of these require direct support from government in order 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.
Over the mandate period, we are targeting 50 enterprises that will be supported to grow by at least 5% in both revenue and jobs. The department will engage industry in clarifying the contribution of business towards achieving these targets.
In terms of sector transformation, with the Tourism Black Economic Empowerment Charter and codes of good practice fully effective, we are geared towards accelerating the transformation of the sector. We aim to achieve about 70% of the 2017 charter targets by 2015. We will continue to use government's procurement systems to pursue industry transformation objectives. We are happy to report that the majority of national departments have effectively supported this transformation drive.
Looking at provincial and local government support, we aim to work together with all the provinces and municipalities. The hon member has placed on record the importance of stable local municipalities and provincial government for the success of tourism. We want to ensure that there is sufficient recognition of tourism in both the provincial growth and development strategies and the integrated development plans of municipalities.
We also intend to provide direct support in planning for specific projects at local level. In this regard, the department has already developed a toolkit to guide tourism planning at local government level. Again, I must emphasise that the rural municipalities will take priority in line with resource availability. [Applause.]
Looking at public education, awareness and outreach, it is important that every South African understands the value of tourism for the country. It is for this reason that the department will support the creation of a tourism culture amongst all South Africans. We will ensure that media platforms are diversified in an effort to reach previously marginalised communities.
In this regard, information will be disseminated through, amongst other platforms, the local community media, traditional councils and the Thusong centres. Our position is that the department must be accessible and must also go to the people. We believe that there can't be development of the people without meaningful involvement.
Iinkosi [Chiefs] as the custodians of our culture and heritage, particularly in the rural villages, are an indispensible stakeholder in the development of cultural heritage tourism in particular and rural tourism in general.
Our regional integration and co-operation also plays a critical role. I heard the hon Njobe indicate less support for South Africa in the World Cup. I just want to say that during the past two weeks I was at the Ministers' meeting in Malawi - the Southern African Development Community Ministers of tourism. They sent me a resolution to convey to the Minister their support for Bafana Bafana, and not just any team. [Applause.]
All of them said that regardless of whether they had tickets or not, they would go to the public viewing areas or would watch from their respective homes and facilities. They will support us, because they understand the meaning of the World Cup for Africa.
We will continue to work with SADC countries and with the Regional Tourism Organisation of Southern Africa, Retosa, to position Southern Africa as a regional destination. We will continue to support tourism recovery efforts in Zimbabwe. In this regard, I am pleased to announce that at the Minister's bilateral recently, there were very encouraging signs of willingness for co-operation between Zimbabwe's tourism industry and South Africa's tourism industry.
As part of regional co-operation, Retosa will be setting up an Africa Village Expo. This is an exposition of Africa's traditions, culture and heritage for fans to experience during the 2010 Fifa World Cup. Hon members are informed that it is taking place at the Melrose Arch.
Looking at social tourism development, the department is currently developing a concept for social tourism with the aim of unlocking travel opportunities for low-income South Africans. We recognise that many South Africans could travel and add to the sector's growth if the right packages were available. In this regard, the department aims to pilot one social tourism project in the current financial year.
Just before I conclude, by way of responding to some of the concerns by the hon members, I want to say that we all understand that resources are often a contested terrain. We understand the situation our government is in - the recession. It is hoped that even Cope understands that it is not of our making that the number of people coming to the World Cup is going down. That, in itself, requires all of us to come together and work together even more.
Fortunately this sector, which is the private sector, is always at the forefront. Together with them, we are looking at reaching our target of a double-digit figure by 2015, which is one of our targets as a department.
Finally, I believe that this contribution will go a long way in improving the lives of our people. I also want to call upon all South Africans to effectively participate in the development of tourism.
The department has an open-door policy and we believe that South Africans have something to offer our sector. Rise up and seize the opportunity. Like the youth say: "Uzoyithola kanjani uhlel' ekhoneni." [If you stay in your corner, you will lose]. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]