Photo by: Bloomberg
Wesgro’s Cape Town & Western Cape Convention Bureau has secured 11 bids in quarter one of the 2022/23 financial year.
It is estimated that the conferences and conventions to be hosted in the province will contribute almost R100-million to the business events value-chain over the next five years.
The majority of the bids won are within the medical sector, with four medical conferences scheduled to be hosted between 2022 and 2024.
The rest of the secured bids span agribusiness, aviation, entrepreneurship, environmental, politics and the tourism sector.
Among the 11 bid wins are prominent large conferences predicted to attract more than 1 000 delegates from across the globe.
These include the African Agri-Investment Indaba 2022, the Regional Conference for the International Symposium of Blood Transfusion 2023, and the International Epidemiology Congress scheduled to take place in 2024.
“Business events are a vital component of our regional economy,” says Wesgro CEO Wrenelle Stander.
“Not only do they result in a positive halo effect for the local hospitality industry, but they are also catalysts for investment into the province.”
With full recovery of the sector being a top priority, Wesgro is still accepting applications for funding assistance through its Business Events Support project.
“We are seeing very promising signs not only of recovery, but also of a great rebound, and we will continue to . . . support Wesgro’s efforts to secure many more events that bring in more visitors,” says Western Cape Finance and Economic Opportunities Minister Mireille Wenger.