The tourism sector in the Western Cape – through the tourism, trade and investment promotion facilitation agency, Wesgro – contributed significantly to the province’s overall economic performance for the months April to December 2022.

This was highlighted by the Western Cape Minister for Finance and Economic Opportunities, Mireille Wenger, who said: “Amid significant challenges, not least of which the energy crisis, which severely compromises economic growth and job creation, it is critical that we explore and implement innovative strategies to attract investment, boost trade and increase tourism in the Western Cape.”

To do this, the Provincial Government, through the Department of Economic Development and Tourism, works with and funds Wesgro to ensure that the province remains a world-class tourism destination, is known as an attractive investment destination, and a sought-after source market globally.

Wesgro has delivered impressive ‘bang for buck’ results across its core mandates. Some of which include:

• The Cape Town Air Access team, powered by Wesgro, works to increase air connectivity to the Western Cape, and has secured four new air routes and three new airlines to the Western Cape, which will bring in an estimated R430 million (€25.2m) in direct tourism spend, between November 2022 and March 2023.
• Cruise Cape Town, also operated by Wesgro, focuses on attracting more cruise lines to the Western Cape and has confirmed 75 cruise ships between November 2022 and May 2023.
• Wesgro’s Convention Bureau, which works with key stakeholders in the events sector to attract conventions and events to the province, has secured 29 conference bids for the Western Cape which will attract an estimated 20 000 delegates and an economic impact of up to R393.4 million (€23.1m) between the 2022/23 and 2024/25 financial years.
• To capitalise on the pent-up post-pandemic demand for travel, Wesgro designed the award-winning #NeverendingTourist series of videos, to attract visitors to the province through the voices of expats in the destination. In the United States, the campaign video, which encourages those looking to ‘Get in a Good Space’ has racked up more than three million views.

“These are just a few of the highlights of what Wesgro has achieved over the last nine months and shows that impressive results and returns can be achieved with innovative and targeted strategies. What is even more impressive is that these fantastic returns have been achieved with an investment of R106 million (€6m),” said Wenger.

CEO of Wesgro, Wrenelle Stander, said: “We are pleased with the results achieved in the last few months. Alongside our partners, we continue to look for innovative ways to ensure Cape Town and the Western Cape remains competitive globally.  I am confident that the momentum will continue as we work to attract investment in the energy sector to boost energy security, unlock new market opportunities in the green economy and differentiate the Western Cape as a leading regional economy.”