SOUTH AFRICAN TOURISM CLUSTER STUDY SUMMARY

( Full Report)

The "Tourism CollaborativeAction Initiative" represents a drive by government, business, and organisedlabour to work together to realise the potential of South African tourism, and therebyimpact positively on the national economy, through enhanced national and internationaltourism earnings and job creation.

In 1998, the Department ofEnvironmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT), the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), theDepartment of Transport (DOT) and the Industrial development Corporation (IDC) committedfunds, expertise and leadership to this project and thus together with representativesfrom government, labour and business (comprising the Tourism Leadership Group - TLG),set about the task of conducting a predominantly consultant driven cluster study.

The objective of this study wasto "combine rigorous analytical research with collaborative human processes todevelop a shared vision and strategy for tourism development and to mobilise collectiveaction by key stakeholders in the private sector, labour and government" (DevelopingTourism through Collaborative Strategy in South Africa, Project Work Plan, p 1). As aprocess oriented approach, the study aimed to mobilise and involve tourism stakeholders inboth the private and public sectors to create foundations for sustainable partnerships,skills development and for a marketing platform that is credible and competitive in theglobal context. Thus the emphasis was on formulating strategies for the implementation ofa program which would promote and develop tourism and equity objectives through marketing,investment, skills and infrastructure development.

The agreed methodology employedto initiate and underpin the fast tracking of tourism economic development in South Africais the "clustering approach". Clustering can be defined as "theprocess of co-operation within an existing cluster in order to strengthen its competitivecapability, or the process of speeding up economic development through the intensivesupport of a cluster that is just beginning", (South African Tourism Cluster, Chapter2, p 40) and a cluster in the context of this project is "geographicconcentrations of local tourism activities and as more generic tourism value chaingroupings of tourism activities at the national level" (South African TourismCluster, Chapter 2, p 40).

The value of using this approachis that it can:

• focus attention on various agendas (such as that of industrial relations in tourism, or the "open skies" policy, etc.) and engage with various constituencies at national level;
• demonstrate how "action" can be planned and implemented in discrete geographically defined areas;
• allow for business people in the same segment of the market to collaborate where needed in order to achieve better results for the sector overall.

The cluster design thus focusedon three levels: the national cluster process; the thematic cluster process; and the localprocesses. The national cluster level focuses on creating a forum whereby role-players atgovernment, labour and business levels can identify blockages in the tourism systemenabling environment, as well as provide suggestions for addressing these. The thematiccluster process focused on two pilots, namely eco-tourism and heritage tourism, throughwhich to address strategies and market development issues for specific market segments.Finally, the local processes were employed in four specific locations, namely Magaliesburg(in the Northwest Province), Khayelitsha (in the Western Cape), Fish River (in the EasternCape) and Valley of the Olifants (in the Northern Province). The purpose was to providereplicable models and learning in applying cluster methods in order to build morecompetitive tourism communities.

Further, by using these threelevels, it was believed that it would facilitate the building of vertical linkages betweenthe various levels of activity, maximise the cross-pollination on over-arching issuesrelating to infrastructure and transport, and provide a "voice" and access tothe local clusters. Further, the focus on the three levels was intended to demonstrate andtest the clustering method application and utility for South African tourism.

With the completion of the"South African Tourism Cluster Study", three documents were generated. These arethe "Strategy in Action Report", the "Accelerating Local Tourism Cluster- A How to Manual" and "Additional Material". The Strategy in ActionReport is the comprehensive report detailing the entire project; the How to Manual wasdesigned and created as a practical resource to support cluster facilitators inaccelerating the development of local clusters; and the Additional Material documentcomprises a roll-out strategy, a local cluster sustainability plan and recommendations.

Although the final policyimplications including dissemination issues currently being concluded and finalised, anumber of recommendations have flowed forth from the study, (Additional Material, page12). In brief, these are set out as follows:

• Develop an operational plan and budget for South African Tourism based on 5 to 10 year strategic imperatives. Measurability and accountability must form part of the plan.

• Define and determine the roles of government at all three levels and the role of the private sector in tourism. Simplify and integrate existing structures where possible.

• Integrate planning across government departments which are key to tourism such as Public Works, Land Affairs and the Department of Transport. Further, integrate planning at all three levels of government and involve the private sector in this planning at all levels.

• Strengthen existing markets and use market segmentation to identify new markets for the future and to increase our understanding of what our tourists need right now. In addition, use international branding to underpin the development of a unique South African image.
• Immediately address issues of financing, funding and capital access for the industry through appropriate incentives and determine and implement ongoing funding mechanisms for government's tourism development responsibilities at the appropriate level. This will include the revision, identification and implementation of sources of funding and financing as well as the integration and upgrading of the delivery of existing SMME/Entrepreneurial capital access schemes. Further, a package of incentives for private sector investment will also need to be developed and implemented.
• Direct funding to focussed infrastructure projects, linking with existing projects where possible and partner with private sector developers on these projects.
• Address access to international/global players in the distribution channel, especially for previously disadvantaged South Africans.
• Distinguish clearly in budgets and plans between developmental tourism projects which will take time to mature and commercial projects which can be developed immediately with the correct package.
• Continue collaborative action processing at a local level, but with matching grant funding. Such incentives will also assist to ensure the inclusion of previously excluded people in the equity of tourism assets.
• Private sector sharing of information and expertise with each other and government around specific goals and targets is needed.

In closing, the focus of thiswork was to develop a process of engagement within the Tourism Sector (public andprivate), in such a way as to develop a consensus view of the Industry and the strategiesneeded to drive it forward. A great many parties were involved in this study which,together with the sheer magnitude of the project, presented a great challenge in terms ofco-ordination and integration, with results that ranged from exceptional to less thanimpressive. Thus it is hoped that the learnings achieved (both positive and negative) willassist in contributing towards identifying the most effective and meaningful processes andmethodologies that can be employed for future projects of a similar nature, as well as thefacilitate concrete strategies for the ongoing development of this sector.

For further information, pleasecontact
Fridge Manager: Tebogo Molefe (tebogom@idc.co.za)