World Tourism Day preparations on track

CALISTUS KOLANTSHO
Correspondent | Friday September 10, 2010 00:00

Speaking to Mmegi about the event, Selebi-Phikwe District Tourism Officer, Mogomotsi Balebetse explained that the event will be held on September 27 with a cultural night taking place at Ikageleng Hall at New Stance Location the day before.

“Since this is a national event, we are working in collaboration with our Francistown office to make sure that the event goes smoothly. We want to create awareness in the community about the industry and conservation. We cannot get anywhere in this industry if we are not conserving the resources that we have,” he said. He said cultural activities that are found in the region must be preserved because it can also benefit residents when tourists visit to see how people are surviving.

Balebetse said the event is expected to add value to the SPEDU programme that has been established by the government. He noted that tourism is one sector that can play an active role in diversifying the economy of Selebi-Phikwe and the entire region. He explained that they have briefed the local councilors about the plan to commemorate the event in this town and have also established a steering committee that is made up of different stakeholders including tourism operators in the region.

“The invited guests will be taken on tour of the BCL Mine shafts that are not being used at the moment because they can also be a tourist attraction. They will also visit the Letsibogo Dam fishery project in Mmadinare,” said Balebetse.

Balebetse said Batswana have shown interest in taking part in the tourism industry as evidenced by the statistics of license applications that his office is receiving. He pointed out that Batswana should however be aware that a lot of money is needed to make it a success in tourism.

He further explained that as the Department of Tourism they are responsible for regulating tourism operations, issuing of licenses to deserving tourism operators. He stated that an operating license is issued to an operator who meets all the requirements.