Tourism boss bids farewell

| Tuesday December 10, 2013 15:50

 

 At the annual conference of the Hospitality and Tourism Association of Botswana (HATAB) held in Maun, Sekgororoane got a standing ovation from the tour operators who wished her well in her future endeavours.

“I have done my time, and it is time to move on. I wish you all the success as businesspeople and I am confident that this country’s tourism has every opportunity to continue to grow by attracting both foreign and meaningful citizen investment and collectively contribute more to our economy,” she said. Sekgororoane stated that she has enjoyed working with stakeholders in the tourism industry, through the good and some challenging times and issues.

“All my assistants whom I am leaving behind are capable of holding the position and performing to the required standards,” she said.

Sekgororoane leaves BTO at a time when domestic/local tourism market has tremendously grown and reached the one million mark last year. BTO says its Explore Botswana campaign, which is aimed at creating awareness on travel and tourism is paying off.

“On our efforts to further encourage domestic tourism, we encourage tour operators to package the country very well, so that it can attract more locals,” Sekgororoane said. She stated that BTO cannot take on the task of growing domestic tourism alone. She urged stakeholders in the value chain of tourism to play a meaningful part in growing this sector.

Meanwhile, Sekgororoane told local tour and travel operators to take advantage of the next coming Botswana Travel and Tourism Expo, as it offers an opportunity for players to meet and establish business partnerships. “We are confident that this forum will help our visiting wholesale and tour operators to gain insights into the Botswana tourism product,” she said.

She pointed out that local travel and tourism industry players have an opportunity to expand and grow new markets and achieve related business objectives. She said that they would use the feedback from this year’s expo to improve next year’s event. Meanwhile tourism industry players applauded Sekgororoane for the job well done. “You leave the industry in a strong space, after taking us through the economic down-turn,” one of the operators said in Maun.