Corporate Social Review Magazine 3rd & 4th QUARTER 2013 | Page 15

both in government and in the private sector. This we will do in order to maximize the impact of our interventions and to ensure that our sector takes its rightful place in the socioeconomic development of our country. Tourism, given its linkages with our sector, is one of those we consider as important partners and stakeholders. As indicated in the NDP, tourists not only want to enjoy the beauty of our flora and fauna, our breath-taking scenery and the beauty of our wild life. They also visit our country to experience our ways of life, our food, our songs, our dance moves as well as our rich and diverse cultural heritage. This means in addition to going to nature reserves and the sea, they also go to our museums, to our heritage sites, our theaters, our art galleries and they attend our cultural events. The Tribute Concert held at the beginning of this month in Moretele, Tshwane, for example, attracts an estimated 30 000 patrons annually to the City of Tshwane; making a meaningful contribution to the local economy. Equally, events such as the Mangaung African Cultural Festival, the Joy of Jazz, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival and the Buyel’eKhaya Festival attract a significant number of tourists to the host cities. In total as the Department of Arts and Culture we are supporting twenty eight major cultural events across the country. It is our intention to upscale these events; ensuring that they make an even bigger impact on the economies of the host cities. Equally, visitors, especially from outside our country, are interested in knowing more about who we are as a people; where we come from and the future we are building for ourselves. CORPORATE SOCIAL REVIEW 13