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Tourism industry offers hope for SA's unemployed youth

21 Jun 2017

The future for SA's young people looks challenging with rising unemployment and job opportunities dwindling. However, the tourism sector shows modest growth and should this growth continue, it could offer hope by providing many of SA's youth the opportunity to get a foothold on a career.

Tourism industry offers hope for SA's unemployed youth

©langstrup via 123RF

The sector has broadened its scope for employment – while many see it as a space for tour guides or front-of-house hotel workers, it now encompasses a variety of career options including opportunities for advertising, marketing and design, financial management, IT and tech and more – and those are beside the opportunities that exist for entrepreneurs to kick start their own businesses.

Enver Duminy, CEO, Cape Town Tourism says: “The outlook for careers in tourism is relatively sunny – with this being Youth Month, it’s the perfect time to highlight the opportunities that exist. We’re noting that hotel properties are being developed, visitor arrivals at Cape Town International Airport are on the rise and there’s no sign that interest is waning in tourism to Cape Town and South Africa. Indeed, with the growth of Halal-friendly tourism and other niche markets, we could see tourism becoming a major economic powerhouse that sustains us,” he states.

Duminy cautions that the industry faces challenges, too: “Tourism is not static; we are aware of the potential impact challenges such as water shortages may have on tourism, as well as other factors such as the exchange rate that may influence travel decisions. Opportunities take hard work and perseverance to come to fruition, but we believe that tourism is a resilient industry able to weather many storms, and one that will see our young people becoming industry leaders,” he concludes.

Cape Town Tourism has noted that many of its tourism operator members are actively encouraging young people from all backgrounds to get exposure to the industry by providing experiences for schools across the peninsula so that the industry can be inclusive in its growth strategies.