Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille has signed an agreement with global tech giant Google aimed at promoting South Africa as a prime tourist destination.
The partnership, sealed this week, will also offer digital training and support to the sector.
De Lille and Dr Alistair Mokoena, country director for Google South Africa, signed the agreement in Cape Town.
The primary goal of the collaboration is to harness Google’s technological expertise to support the department’s efforts in promoting South Africa as a prime tourist destination.
It also aims at facilitating knowledge sharing, skills development, and the use of digital tools to enhance tourism experiences and sustainability, as the department is mandated to create conditions conducive for growth and development of tourism.
Mission to grow tourism
According to the department, the collaboration does not involve any exchange of money.
The department said the partnership is in line with De Lille’s mission to grow tourism to its full potential, including unlocking the power of technology in the sector and increasing arrivals to South Africa to support economic growth and job creation.
“In an era of digital transformation, collaboration between technology giants and government entities has the potential to reshape industries and enhance public services,” De Lille said.
“As stated in the Tourism Sector Green Paper, there is a ‘lack of support mechanisms for the [tourism] sector, particularly SMMEs [small, medium and micro enterprises], to adapt to a digital future and other technological advancements’.
“This [is a] visionary partnership between Google and the Ministry of Tourism, focusing on non-monetary exchanges to leverage each parties’ strengths for mutual benefits.”
Tourist destination
Mokoena said: “We are excited to partner with the Department of Tourism and to sign the letter of intent, which aims to position South Africa as a great tourist destination.
“As a company that prides itself in organising the world’s information and making it universally accessible and useful, we look forward to rolling out various programmes in conjunction with the department, to fast-track digital transformation in the sector, helping with digital skills and showcasing South African tourism through our Google arts and culture platform.”
In terms of the collaboration, Google can provide insights into global travel trends, towards guiding the department and South African Tourism’s strategies in targeting specific markets and tailoring experiences to visitor expectations.
