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4868 [Tuesday, 29 October 2013• Local Government: the local sphere of government is animportant contributor to the success of tourism activities in termsof community driven tourism philosophy. Municipalities controlmunicipal rates, by-laws, and electricity prices which affectSMMEs and the industry at large. Municipalities should providean enabling environment for tourism to thrive at a local level andshould be guardians of individual interest over communitybenefits. Some municipalities however, do not have tourismdirectorates to assist in aligning tourism to other municipalactivities for the benefit of the industry.• Job creation at local level: tourism is a demand-driven sectorand there is a need to conduct studies on how the volume andvalue of demand inform investment in supply and job creation. Ajobs model developed by the department should beimplemented to ascertain how many jobs are created by thesector. Niche products and tourism routes should be developedat local level to enhance opportunities for job creation withincommunities.• Public-Private Partnerships (PPP’s): the Department shouldwork closely with national Treasury to implement the PPPToolkit for Tourism. The Social Tourism project of auditing allunderutilised public assets for tourism development was seenas a good collaboration. The Independent DevelopmentCorporation could assist in developing potential sites into lowcost tourism accommodation.• Road Signage and infrastructure: poor road signage andinfrastructure impact negatively on access to tourism products,especially in rural areas. The poor condition of some roads,such as R74 that runs between the Free State and KwaZulu-Natal provinces, has caused some tourism businesses to closedown. Tour operators have taken destinations affected by poorroad conditions out of their itineraries. This in turn has causedloss of permanent job opportunities to local communities.Collaboration between the Department of Tourism and theDepartment of Transport needed to be intensified.• Tourism information: the public is not fully aware about theprogrammes of the Department therefore public education,awareness and information dissemination should be linked tooutreach initiatives. It was observed that there is slowmovement in transformation and there should be greatersupport in implementing the Tourism Sector Codes and TourismB-BBEE Scorecard. Innovation is needed from the Departmentto expedite transformation.ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS NO 147─2013