PE loses out on top event
The Nelson Mandela Bay municipality was dealt a heavy blow last month when it lost a bid to host a major automotive event because the city did not have a suitable venue.
The municipality failed to secure the National Association of Automotive Component and Allied Manufacturers Show because the city lacks an international convention centre (ICC).
The event will be hosted by the Ethekwini metro.
This was according to economic development and tourism boss Anele Qaba.
He said on Monday the metro was losing out on conferencing events – which other cities such as Durban and Cape Town were making money on.
The automotive show takes place annually in March.
Last year, 1,304 delegates and 46 speakers attended the event to discuss issues affecting the automotive industry.
“The reality is that we do not have the exhibition space so we can’t even bid for these events,” Qaba said.
He said most cities had a convention bureau tasked with finding and bidding for events.
“Conferences have got big numbers and, if you are going to have a conference that has big numbers, this means these people are in the city for the entire week.
“In terms of tourism, these people would book accommodation and they would spend a lot of money. This is a boost for the tourism industry.”
Qaba said a plan to have a convention centre was part of the city’s “2020 vision”.
“For us to be able to attract people we need to have a facility that can accommodate those numbers.”
He said while there was the Boardwalk International Convention Centre, exhibition space was still a major problem in the city.
“There has to be exhibition space. Even if we were to successfully bid for the Africa Tourism Indaba, we are not in a position to host it because we do not have a venue.”
He said the city struggled to properly host the South African Automotive Week when it was held at the Moffett On Main Lifestyle Centre in 2012.
“The exhibition was done in the underground parking. That is not a conducive environment. You can’t have an exhibition done in the basement.”
He said the shortage of exhibition space also came up when the city hosted the MetroFM Awards in 2007.
“There was a tent put up at Kings Beach but one of the complaints was the absence of a venue.
“The reality is that if we decide to go for bigger events and play in that space we need to look at developing an ICC. That is the bottom line,” Qaba said.
“All we need is a multi-purpose centre where we can do conferences.
“If you want to unlock the city’s tourism and position it as a tourist destination this is what we should do.”
The Mandela Bay Development Agency has been tasked with investigating what land would be suitable for the ICC.
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