No progress has been made on restoring the town of Pilgrim’s Rest. This is despite Eric Kholwane, MEC for Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, telling delegates at the Satsa conference this weekend that an intergovernmental programme was working on it.

Lisa Sheard, CEO of Kruger Lowveld Tourism, rubbished the MEC’s statements at a panel discussion on Friday on how to sell the province.

“Its [Pilgrim’s Rest] deterioration has been little short of shameful and there has been no response from government,” said Sheard.

“You have an absolute gem in this province and you are letting it go. You have to pay attention there immediately,” added Linda Pampallis, CEO of Thompsons Africa.

Kholwane previously told delegates to the conference that the reason the restoration was taking time was because Pilgrim’s Rest was the property of the Department of Public Works.

Sheard said she has consulted with 28 stakeholder organisations and put together a plan outlining a new look on how Pilgrim’s Rest could operate. “We have been patient; we have put a plan on the table that has been stonewalled by the department of Public Works.” She added that the problem with the town was that half of the businesses were no longer operational and that the problem needed to be elevated to a national level with the support of political will to make it work. 

Xolani Mthethwa, Head of Tourism: Mpumalanga Tourism and Parks Agency, said one purpose of the intergovernmental programme was to provide a platform to speak to the mayors and municipal managers to encourage them to take tourism seriously. “We’re making sure that tourism will be budgeted for and prioritised accordingly.”

The aim with Pilgrim’s Rest is to remove the government and the bureaucracy and get a private operator on board that is able to run with the project, Mthethwa said. He explained that another reason for the delay was the bureaucracy in dealing with an area managed by the government where a decision taken in a week might take six months to implement. “We’re looking at how do we get a process that is above board and get the private sector to come in and run it?”

Margie Whitehouse, CMO SA Tourism, added that what was needed was collaboration. Craig Drysdale, GM Global Sales at Thompsons Africa, added that, as tour operators they would be willing to participate to make the project work. “It’s not just about how to build an economic case for tourism but how do we make the entire country aware that we have to collaborate?” said Whitehouse.

What do you think is needed to restore the town of Pilgrim’s Rest to a tourist attraction? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.