Reflecting on an eventful year

ANOTHER eventful year for Nelson Mandela Bay Tourism (NMBT) has come to a close and along with it a time to reflect and reminisce.

From hosting large events like Ironman, the Neil Diamond concert and soon the South African leg of the HBSC Sevens World Series to achieving objectives in the face of increasing challenges, NMBT and Nelson Mandela Bay have had an action-packed year.

“As CEO of NMBT, it has been an honour to be part of another successful year, not without it challenges of course. The economic climate has added its share of woes to most industries including tourism, but even this obstacle was not enough to put a damper on NMBT’s successes,” said NMBT CEO Mandlakazi Skefile.

Testament to this Skefile said are the many highlights illuminating a year of hard work and achievements by staff and members alike, “We have met our goals like improving stakeholder relations. NMBT’s visibility on local platforms like media and at events taking place in and around the city has also grown, developing a stronger tie to a very essential stakeholder, namely the residents of NMB.”

A feat Skefile is especially proud of is NMBT receiving an international award from Switzerland for marketing a city that offers ‘An exciting African experience for mind, body and soul’.

“It is important that one acknowledges the efforts of everyone who supported NMBT and the city’s best interests. Be it an event successfully carried out, financial assistance or even being an ambassador. They are all accomplishments which ensured another great year in the Bay,” said Skefile referring to Nelson Mandel Bay Municipality (NMBM), South African Tourism (SAT), members and residents to mention a few.

The Southern Kings inclusion into the Vodacom Super Rugby series, which includes teams from Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, has focused attention once again on Nelson Mandela Bay and its world-class stadium, serving as another prominent victory for the local tourism.

Another flagship event in Nelson Mandela Bay that reaped benefits for city coffers was the annual Ironman competition. It showed an increase in return on investment from R44m in 2011 to R62,7m in 2012. This was based on the number of athletes, their traveling companions, daily average spend and number of bed-nights in the city.

The city won the bid to host the South African Association for the Conference Industry (SAACI) conference in 2013 as a result of improved relations with other tourism associations within the region, “NMBT will continue to work together with SAACI to ensure the success of this national event, which will enable the city to showcase itself to the meetings and conference industry,” she added.

NMBT welcomed efforts by its sister agency, Mandela Bay Development Agency (MBDA), to develop tourism attractions like Route 67 and the refurbishment on the beachfront as part of its mandate to regenerate parts of the city.

“Mentioning only a few highlights is difficult, there are so many memorable events. NMBT left for China earlier this year to target emerging international markets and was greatly successful.”

NMBT launched a NMB website in Mandarin on their visit and as result received wide media coverage on China’s largest television station CCTV along with the state-owned internet news website and a feature article in a Chinese lifestyle magazine amounting to R1.5mil worth of coverage.

The development of the massive R1-billion upgrade at The Boardwalk casino will benefit the tourism with its world-class conference centre, hotel and spa said Stakeholder board chairman Odwa Mtati.

“As a board, we are further excited by the prospects of the results of new developments in the city, like The Boardwalk Complex. As the city’s tourism destination marketing agency, NMBT needs to strategically partner with private sector initiatives such as this and leverage marketing exposure that results in a win-win for both parties,” he said.

It is vital amidst the many triumphs throughout the year in review to make note of the challenges faced in order to better manage similar obstacles in future.

“The declining funding to NMBT poses a major challenge which we will continue to deal with. The recovery of the world economy will remain precarious for the foreseeable future; therefore the need to focus on both domestic and continental markets must be emphasized.”