Starting with the inaugural Music & Lifestyle Expo on Friday and Saturday at the Sandton Convention Centre, the province also played champion host to the 179th Soweto Derby at the iconic Soccer City while the country’s capital city expertly hosted the final leg of the inaugural African Football League at Loftus Stadium to full capacity.
Supporting Gauteng’s sporting prowess and the dynamic interface between the creative sector and tourism over the weekend were the successful hosting of the Friends of Amstel festival in the West Rand, the Music & Lifestyle Expo and the U’R event at Constitution Hill. “We are acting on the Premier’s directive to pump Gauteng’s economy from every angle, we are guided by the drive to create sustainable jobs, curb youth unemployment, and retool our 10 high-growth sectors which includes the sports, creative, tourism and hospitality sectors, explained Gauteng MEC for Economic Development Tasneem Motara.”
Sports entertainment is an important sector for a lifestyle destination like Gauteng. The consistent excellent performance by our sporting teams, creative talent, and usage of our world-class integrated infrastructure as an economic catalyst positions Gauteng better and makes it an attracting destination for regional, local, and international visitation mainly driven by visiting friends and relatives (VFR) business events, shopping and lifestyle and the need to be where things are happening daily.
While Gauteng might not have the traditional tourism offerings like the mountains or the ocean, the main essence and brand key of this golden province is its people, all fifteen and half million in their diversity, settings, and posture. The colorful and energetic sites in display at Soccer City and Loftus Stadiums over the weekend represents the true DNA of Gauteng and South Africa.
In front of the FIFA and CAF presidents and the massive global television audience’s that zoomed into South Africa and Gauteng province, we indeed put up a spectacle and stayed true to our positioning as the home of champions and preferred destination for quality global events hosting, emphasised Gauteng Tourism Authority CEO Sthembiso Dlamini. “We are thrilled that our efforts of investing in quality economic infrastructure, reskilling initiatives for our workforce and partner marketing with all the role-players is bearing positive results. We are indebted to our sporting fans, security personnel, hospitality staff, world-class broadcasting facilities and partners and volunteers who continue to make Gauteng a must-visit and experience bleisure destination of choice.”
The crusade to pump the Gauteng economy from all angles daily continues this week with the golden province set to host the Crown Gospel Music Awards in Soweto and the much-anticipated Ride Joburg 94.7 Cycling Challenge. “The consistent hosting of these events ensures that we have a solid industry, sustain temporary jobs created and create a sense of permanency which is required to build a resilient visitor economy,” concluded Dlamini.
