Top property convention attracts top international speakers - 13/04/2007
The 39th Annual Sapoa Convention kicks off with a touch of celebrity glamour as Carolyn Kepcher delivers the keynote address. The former executive vice-president, COO and GM for Trump National Golf Club, Kepcher is better know for her role as Donald Trump’s assistant on the hot series The Apprentice. The Property Magazine reports that although SA’s performance in the run-up to the 2010 World Cup will be in the spotlight, with a panel session dedicated to this topic alone, Sapoa CE Neil Gopal says the convention is focusing on a five-year timeline for the SA commercial and industrial property industry. ’The theme of this year’s convention is The Road to 2012 – Masterminding the Next Five Years,’ explains Neil. ’The World Cup in 2010 is one milestone along the way, but there is a host of other issues that also need consideration.’
Cape Town’s transport requirements for the 2010 World Cup will be outlined to Helderberg-based members of Cape Town Tourism at a meeting in Strand on April 25. The District Mail reports that Cape Town International Airport GM George Uriesi will provide an update on the changes being implemented at the airport while City of Cape Town executive director for Transport and Roads Eddie Chinnappen will talk about the City’s transport plans and status. Cape Town Tourism announced earlier this month the launch of its preparation and information sessions relating to the 2010 World Cup. A number of membership networking events have been planned.
Johannesburg businesses and residents will get an opportunity to air their grievances to President Thabo Mbeki at the weekend when he visits the city as part of a programme to keep the government abreast of community issues. Given Johannesburg’s position as Gauteng’s economic hub, the discussions are expected to focus largely on deepening shared economic growth, eradicating poverty and service-delivery challenges, said Annette Griessel, Gauteng government spokesperson. Business Day reports that the Johannesburg Business Forum will make a presentation on behalf of its members. This will be followed by a visit to Soweto, where Mbeki will attend a graduation ceremony for June 16 veterans who had skills training under the Expanded Public Works Programme. He will inspect progress on the revamp of the Orlando Stadium, to be used as a practice venue for the 2010 World Cup.
The Local Organising Committee has organised a business opportunities workshop for people who would like to reap the 2010 World Cup rewards. Tim Modise, LOC communications and marketing director, said the workshop would take place at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park on June 19 and 20. This is one gathering that many South Africans will have to attend for more clarity regarding their plans for 2010.
’There are many business opportunities around the World Cup,’ said Modise, adding that there would also be a marketing workshop on April 25.
For the first time in the history of the World Cup, non-hotel accommodation will also be used for the keenly-awaited 2010 edition. The Sowetan reports that the use of bed and breakfast facilities will ease the pressures on the hotels enlisted by Match, a Fifa accommodation and ticketing agency, for the tournament. All the B&Bs should acquire grading status in order for their facilities to be used during the tournament. All the contracted properties will be listed on the Fifa website. The Tourism Grading Council of SA and Match will embark on roadshows between June and November in all the nine host cities. The roadshows are aimed at addressing questions relating to the grading process. The roadshows will also include the signing of agreements between the accommodation provider and Match.
A summit on Johannesburg’s inner city, scheduled for May 5, is expected to produce a comprehensive charter that will guide developments in the area over the next few years. Engineering News reports that issues expected to feature on the summit’s agenda, include the recent decision by the Supreme Court of Appeals to uphold the city’s right to evict residents from unsafe and unhealthy buildings and to provide them with alternative accommodation. Further, the summit will look at planning for the 2010 World Cup, and the impact this global sports event will have on developments in the inner city. Up to 700 delegates are expected to attend the one-day event.
Soccer, business, churches, traditional leaders and community organisations are expected to attend the North West 2010 World Cup conference in Sun City today. The Sowetan reports that the two-day conference will be addressed by various leaders, including LOC chairman Irvin Khoza and Joe Phaahla, the 2010 World Cup Unit director-general. Kennedy Mosiapoa, the provincial 2010 World Cup co-ordinator, said more than 300 stakeholders will attend the conference. ’We have also invited all the municipalities in the North West province because we want to make it an all-inclusive process,’ said Mosiapoa. ’Some of the things that we will discuss include establishing fan parks because not everybody will be able to go to Royal Bafokeng Stadium to watch the matches.’
Conference to asses North West’s readiness - 02/04/2007
A conference to assess the North West province’ s readiness for the 2010 World Cup will begin at Sun City on Wednesday. ’ The Conference will seek to produce a proper assessment of the collective work done to ensure that the province is ready to deliver a successful World Cup,’ said Ndleleni Duma, the MEC for Sports, Arts and Culture. The Sunday Times reports that the two-day conference will be held under the theme ’ Holding a successful Fifa World Cup and leaving a lasting SA legacy in the North West’ . Rustenburg will be one of the host cities of the Cup and the Royal Bafokeng Stadium has been selected as a venue for the games.
When Duncan Revie, Soccerex’ s CE, suggested to his sister and spouse that he wanted to organise a football convention, they told him to shut up. That was 11 years ago. Now Revie presides over the only business-to-business event which combines a football festival, an awards ceremony, a two-day conference and an exhibition that brings together all the world’ s footballing interests at one time. Not to be outdone, SA is gearing up to host the event from November 26-28. The Sunday Times reports that Soccerex will be held at the Sandton Convention Centre for the next three years. It is projected that deals worth R7bn will be signed and the expo will give Gauteng invaluable media coverage. It will also boost the country’ s build-up to the 2010 Fifa World Cup.
Soccerex stalls will be sold out soon - 30/03/2007
Duncan Revie, boss of world-renowned soccer exhibition Soccerex, has warned potential exhibitors that stalls for this year’ s exposition at the Sandton Convention Centre will be sold out in the next six weeks. The Sowetan reports that Gauteng, bidding on behalf of SA, beat Singapore, Qatar and Bahrain to host the 10-year-old spectacle already hosted at Wembley (1996-7), Paris (1998), LA (1999), Old Trafford in Manchester (2000) and Dubai (2001/06). Being an epic expo, the smallest stand at the exhibition will cost around R22 000 (3x3 metres square) and the most expensive around R2.25m.
Gauteng Premier Mbhazima Shilowa will this week launch two key initiatives to fulfil commitments he made during his state of the province address in February. The Star reports that On March 29, Shilowa and Gauteng Sport MEC Barbara Creecy launches Gauteng’s 2010 Strategy which sets out the province’s priorities in contributing to preparations for a successful 2010 Fifa World Cup tournament. More than 400 stakeholders are expected to attend the launch under the theme, ’Gauteng 2010: Hosting a successful Fifa World Cup, Leaving a Lasting Legacy’. LOC representatives, government and civil society stakeholders will participate in a range of commissions on the Gauteng city region’s infrastructure and transport, business opportunities, sport development, volunteerism and marketing.
The AU Commission in collaboration with the Government of SA and the 2010 World Cup LOC hosted a Workshop on the planning of activities for the International Year of African Football and the 2010 World Cup African Legacy Programme from Tuesday to Wednesday, 6 to 7 March 2007, in Pretoria. The purpose of the workshop was to operationalise the implementation of the Declaration of the 8th AU Assembly, adopted on 30 January 2007, on the International Year of African Football, as well as the 2010 African Legacy Programme. Two key issues that informed discussions throughout the Workshop are that ’Failure is not an option’ and that ’Africa has to start living the 2010 World Cup legacy if she is serious about ensuring that the 2010 tournament itself leaves a lasting legacy.’
Transport Minister, Jeff Radebe will deliver an opening address at the 2010 Soccer World Cup Seminar, themed ’The French Experience’ on Thursday March 15, 2007 at Hyde Park, Johannesburg. The aim of this seminar is to display the skills, know-how and expertise amongst the French Trade Commission, the French Agency for International Trade Development, UBIFRANCE and South Africa which will make an enormous contribution towards the planning of the SA 2010 World Cup.
Mediatech exhibition to showcase cutting edge technologies - 12/03/2007
Organised by Thebe Exhibitions, mediatech africa 2007 showcases cutting edge technologies and services from industry leaders in television and broadcast, sound and audio, lighting and staging, animation, communication, and every related field. Bizcommunity.com reports that the combination of technology, demonstrations, networking opportunities and special events attracts top quality visitors from all parts of the media, entertainment, broadcast and communication industries. Jess Goedhals, GM of the Broadcast and Professional division at Sony SA, says Sony SA has already won a contract to supply the SABC with the country’s first high-definition outside broadcast vehicle for the 2010 games. Goedhals, like many other exhibitors expect to drive a lot more business in the lead up to the 2010 World Cup with the products on show at mediatech africa 2007.
NFC to host International Consumer Day - 10/03/2007
As part of the International Consumer Day celebrations, the National Consumer Forum (NCF) will host a one-day conference aimed at bringing together business, government and independent organisations to address ways of making the public and private sectors more accountable to consumers. City Press reports that the day is celebrated every year on March 15 to highlight consumer rights and issues locally and abroad. NCF chairperson Thami Bolani said that with 2010 World Cup fever sweeping SA, the business world faced the major challenge of improving poor services to consumers. ’We will be hosting people from different parts of the world and the poor service offered by our retail stores and the home affairs department gives rise to concern. We need to ensure that by 2010, service providers have the interest of consumers at heart when conducting business,’ said Bolani.
A number of events will be hosted in SA in preparation for the 2010 World Cup, the LOC said on Wednesday. City Press reports that the preliminary draw will be hosted in Durban on November 23, a Confederations Cup in June 2009, a final draw in December 2009 and teams and referees workshops in February 2010. The Confederations Cup will be played in PE, Bloemfontein, Johannesburg, Pretoria and Rustenburg. LOC spokesperson Tim Modise said Cape Town was excluded as the stadium would not have been completed by the time of the Confederations Cup.
Fedhasa Cape will put the spotlight on World Cup 2010 on February 26, at the first of its four hospitality events for the year. The District Mail reports that the event will be hosted at one of its member venues, the Kleine Zalze Wine Estate, between Somerset West and Stellenbosch. High profile guest speakers will address the readiness of the Cape hospitality industry for 2010.
MEC Mhlahlo to host a provincial Community Police Forum - 22/02/2007
In response to the President’s clarion call for an extensive mobilisation of communities against crime, Eastern Cape MEC for Safety, Liaison, Roads and Transport Thobile Mhlahlo will host a Community Police Forum Meeting at the Christian Centre in East London on 27 and 28 February 2007. This Indaba, which is taking place during the Safety and Security Month, is expected to be attended by 700 CPF members from across the province and a variety of stakeholders including government departments, business, non-governmental organisations and other civil society bodies. The purpose of the meeting is to reposition the CPFs in order to respond promptly to the new social crime prevention strategies, especially now that we are preparing for 2010 World Cup.
Gauteng to host annual business tourism expo - 07/02/2007
Gauteng tourism will be scrutinised from all angles this month when Meetings Africa, a world renowned convention and exhibition, takes place at the Sandton Convention Centre. According to a report on the Gauteng Provincial Government Portal, small, medium and micro enterprises together with reputable practitioners and international and local stakeholders will share knowledge on plans to provide the best hospitality to guests as well as fans expected to come to SA for the 2010 World Cup. CE for the Gauteng Tourism Authority, Cawe Mahlati, said ’Gauteng is SA’s meetings capital and Meetings Africa is a logical platform to showcase our unusual meetings offerings.’
Botswana to host Business Dialogue Forum - 05/02/2007
Botswana will host a Business Dialogue Forum whose main objective is to explore ways of maximising the benefits from the FIFA World Cup which will be held in SA in 2010. The Botswana Guardian reports that the Forum, a collaborative initiative of Botswana and SA business people, will provide a platform to deliberate on opportunities in business and sport development in Africa, explore potential mechanisms to facilitate high throughput and truly make this an African World Cup, as well as promote the World Cup as a driver for development in Africa.
Zimbabwe on show at the International Tourism Trade Fair - 05/02/2007
A Zimbabwe tourism delegation, led by Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) CE, is in Spain to attend the four-day International Tourism Trade Fair (Fitur). According to a News Net report, Zimbabwe, which is participating at the showcase for the first time, joins several other countries from Europe, Asia, Africa, the Americans and Autralasia which are exhibiting at fitur, which is viewed as the most important event on the world tourism calender, after the London based, World Travel Market. ZTA CE, Karikoga Kaseke said apart from exhibiting at the show, the Zimbabwe delegation is set to meet with some key people in various Spanish sectors to seek their assistance in promoting Zimbabwe ahead of the 2010 World Cup to be held in neighbouring SA.
Preparations have reached an advanced stage for SA’s hosting of the internationally renowned Soccer-Expo later this year. The five previous editions of the Soccer-Expo were held in Dubai. Soccer teams from around the world use the Soccerex to showcase the latest in footballing to an audience of global buyers. Duncan Revie, the Soccerex chief executive, says Soccerex is the world convention for the football industry. It is the meeting place once a year of all the businesses that make soccer meet up and get together to do business. He says they will be bringing the movers and shakers of the football industry who may not have come down to SA around 5 000 delegates from around the world and they will also be getting a first sight for some of them of SA and everybody will see what a beautiful place it is.
2010 under the spotlight at AU summit - 20/01/2007
The 2010 World Cup will come under the spotlight at the African Union Summit of Heads of State and Government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on January 29 and 30. Un Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will attend the summit as part of his first overseas visit in his new post. He will be joined by Fifa President Sepp Blatter who is also expected to address the summit. One the summit’s highlights will be the launch of 2007 as the International year of African football, in line with the resolution taken at the previous head of state Summit in Khartoum, Sudan last year. The 50th anniversary of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) will also be celebrated.
