Cape Town – Residents and visitors to the Western Cape could soon – literally – follow in the footsteps of late former president Nelson Mandela if a proposal by the province’s MEC for Economic Opportunities, Alan Winde is approved, the Western Cape Government announced on Thursday.
“The Western Cape will seek to honour the legacy of former statesman, Nelson Mandela, through the development of a heritage tourism route which traces Madiba’s journey in our province,” said Winde.
Winde said the proposed route was part of the province’s Project Khulisa, a strategy aimed at boosting the Western Cape’s heritage tourism offering to tourists.
The idea for the proposal stemmed from a “Madiba-inspired tourism attractions” mobile app map created by South Africa Tourism. The proposed idea included developing signage for a Mandela route and highlighting significant sites in the province.
Winde said: “The map was launched in 2014 to encourage local and international tourists to walk in the footsteps of Madiba. We hope these initiatives will offer an authentic experience to visitors, allowing them to experience a piece of the Western Cape’s rich cultural heritage.”
The aim of developing signage was to allow for easy navigation to the different sites of which five had been already identified.
Robben Island, Pollsmoor Prison, Drakenstein Correctional Services, the City Hall and Parliament were the sites identified as part of the proposed Mandela journey.
Speaking about the impact Project Khulisa could have on the Western Cape’s economy, he said that when the project was viewed in a high growth scenario, it had the potential to increase the tourism sector’s economic contribution by up to R28bn from R17bn, and could create up to 100 000 additional formal jobs.
He mentioned that at present, 204 000 residents were formally employed in the tourism sector. To achieve these goals, Winde said: “The private and public sector have to collaborate and jointly invest in a set of focused, specific projects which maximise our unique attractions.
“We will work with local and national tourism authorities to market the route. Collaboration with key role players is key to ensure the project’s success,” Winde added.
Winde said the proposal would be submitted to Cabinet for consideration in August.
ANA