Amadeus and South Africa’s tourism industry collaborate for tourism growth

At the very core of everything we do at Amadeus, is a commitment to transformational, sustainable and inclusive growth of global travel and tourism. This is why we are excited about being part of the innovative model for private-public collaboration announced at the Indaba Trade Fair in Durban yesterday. This new approach aspires to deliver new technology and data solutions, services and training solutions to meet the growing needs of South Africa’s travel and tourism industry.

The new partnership with the National Department of Tourism and the South African tourism industry, with support from the Department of Trade and Industry, is a long-term commitment by the industry to work together for the greater good. The aim is to develop several programs, including a National Tourism Visitor Information System (NTVIS) and a Travel and Tourism Training Academy, to drive inclusive and transformational growth.

The NTVIS will be a new online platform through which South Africa will develop and commercialize an expanded tourism offering, curate and analyze tourism data for valuable insights into the services and business needs of industry players and better service the needs of visitors. It will build on and improve what already exists, as well as develop completely new solutions, and focus on creating new opportunities for small medium and micro enterprises in the travel industry.

With a special emphasis on the skills that the travel industry requires, and the use of digital and virtual training facilities, the active involvement of the industry in the Travel and Tourism Training Academy will ensure that training leads to employability or employment for young South Africans, with a special focus on women. It will also bring much-needed professional skills and technology solutions to boost small and medium businesses in the tourism sector, especially in rural areas.

The announcement is the result of two years of intensive dialogue among all the stake holders. It coincides well with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s call for the private sector to create jobs as the country embarks on the path to economic recovery.

This is the start of a new journey for the travel and tourism industry in South Africa, with a unique model for public-private collaboration to meet the challenges of tomorrow. It will not be easy, and no one should expect miracles, but with everyone’s continued commitment, we believe it can radically change how industry growth contributes to inclusive social and economic development. We also hope that it can be an example to follow.