NELSON MANDELA BAY TOURISM COLLABORATES WITH BIG ONE UP ON BAY TV

Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism (NMBT) will commence and celebrate a partnership with the Big One Up show on Bay TV as of the 17 May 2015; which is aimed at the youth of the destination.  The show will focus around activities in Nelson Mandela Bay (NMB) which youth can participate in and enjoy as well as showcase opportunities of growth and development for youth within the sector.

Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism CEO, Ms Mandlakazi Skefile, confirmed, “Youth will be informed about attractions and activities available for them to experience that are affordable and accessible through utilising the Nelson Mandela Bay pass. The youth are the future of our destination and we are eager to make them proud citizens and ambassadors of Nelson Mandela Bay.”

Big One Up is a youth show that has eleven segments that play throughout the week. There are four segments a day, from Monday to Friday.  The show is an Edutainment show, which encompasses the elements of education and entertainment.

Ms Sinazo Mtshengu, Executive Producer of the Big One Up Show shares, “The aim of this new segment is to get as much information to the youth, while keeping their attention on the show. Tourism is a great topic which can assist to keep youth active by doing constructive and healthy activities in a safe environment while learning.”

This show provides a platform for the youth of NMB to get their ideas and views heard. As a well-rounded show it incorporates topics such as sports, music, academics, travel, fashion and more. The youth are allowed the opportunity to see life beyond what they are used to and as they know it. Therefore the show expands their knowledge base and opens them up to new ideas.

Ms Skefile further shares, “Getting youth excited about tourism includes having youth educated about tourism matters, national heritage and culture which in turn creates opportunities for the youth as well as skilled and enthusiastic work force for the industry.”

Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) recently announced that youth unemployment in the country has fallen to 36.1% – a 3.4% drop since 2008. Tourism also has the potential to play a role in the situation of youth unemployment which is by supplying a skill set for the tourism and hospitality sectors. The show will enable to introduce youth to a sector they might have previously been unaware of and so doing ignite a passion for the industry.

South Africa has the third highest unemployment rate in the world for youth between the ages of 15 to 24, according to the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Risk 2014 report. According to this report it shares that more than half (50%) of South Africans between 15 and 24 are unemployed.

There are a number of interventions implemented by private sector, associations and government such as those by the Culture Art Tourism Hospitality and Sports Sector Education and Training Authority (CATHSEATA) which set out to bridge the gap between the study and work environment. Skills Development initiatives through CATHSEATA include amongst others learnerships that are aimed at addressing a specific niche area of skills sets, Internships within organisations which equip students with practical experience as wells as skills programmes and bursaries.  Private sector and government can benefit from these initiatives as well by signing up their business to accept the students providing the youth with growth opportunity while increasing the human capital of their business.

NMBT participates in the CATHSEATA learnership programmes and will have students who do internships with them on the show to share about their experience and the value thereof. NMBT also encourages all tourism sector businesses to participate in this programme as well as others in order to be part of the future of tourism in order to stimulate an enthusiastic and skilled future work force.