Tourism Update, in partnership with SA Tourism, hosted a live webinar on Tuesday, June 27 on SME development.
SA Tourism’s GM for Strategic Events and Exhibitions, Neil Nagooroo, was joined by Satsa Chief Operating Officer, Hannelie Du Toit and Septi Bukula from Osiba Management, a local buyer.
Nagooroo announced that SA Tourism’s market access programme had been extended for a further three years, and said SAT would continue working with the SMEs hosted in the Hidden Treasures pavilion at this year’s Indaba during this period.
Bukula met with some of the Hidden Treasures SMEs during the show. His company focuses on organising international conferences in SA, but had persistent requests from clients asking for assistance with pre- and post-conference programmes. “We were keen to bring this business to SMEs but we need to find quality partners.” He said he managed to achieve this during Indaba and had partnered with 14 SMEs as a result.
Du Toit said Satsa would be placing a key focus on SME development and transformation in the coming years. She said the association would be playing a dual role. “Firstly, we will be working on creating a more inclusive membership base but, at the same time, we will be helping our members to find credible SME partners that they can work with.”
Other topics covered during the webinar included discussions around red tape and other barriers, accreditation and ways in which SMEs can get involved in SA Tourism’s Market Access project and similar programmes.
To listen to the full webinar, click here.
