The National Empowerment Fund (NEF) recently showcased eight of its investees at Africa’s Travel Indaba 2019, representing €12m worth of investments.
The Department of Tourism and the NEF signed an agreement in June 2018 to establish the Tourism Transformation Fund (TTF) to focus exclusively on the transformation of the South African tourism industry.
Some of the recipients of the funding who exhibited at Africa’s Travel Indaba were:
- Graskop Gorge Lift Company (Mpumalanga) – €2.5m
- Rhino Ridge Lodge in Hluhluwe (KZN) – €1.3m
- Royal Thonga Safari Lodge (KZN) – €609 000
- Tiger Lodge in Jozini (KZN) – €1.7m
- Park Inn Polokwane (Limpopo) – €300 000
- Donga La Boutique in Ladysmith (KZN) – €392 000
- Tala Lodge (KZN) – €876 000
“All these initiatives are an indication of our commitment to ensuring that tourism plays the strategic role that it has the potential to play in turning around the economic fortunes of the country, while also creating equitable participation in the economy. The NEF has already committed over R200 million (€12.42m) to the sector, and this is set to grow meaningfully as a result of our dynamic partnership with the Department of Tourism,” said Philisiwe Mthethwa, CEO of the NEF.
Tourism and leisure, as a targeted growth sector, constitutes a growing focus of the NEF in a portfolio of approved transactions valued at €607m countrywide.
