Cape Town has retained the title of the number one city in all of Africa for business tourism events, according to the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).
ICCA represents the main specialists in organising, transportation and accommodating international meetings and events, and comprises of over 1 000 member companies and organisations spanning across 100 countries in the world.
The current ranking was evaluated during the 12 212 international association meetings that took place in 2016, and is the reason why Cape Town has climbed 15 places to be ranked in the Top 40 destinations for business tourism in the world.
This is the fourth consecutive year the city has won the award, beating cities such as Johannesburg, Maarakech and Nairobi. This can be attributed to the conference bids secured by the Cape Town and Western Cape Convention Bureau, which is a strategic division of Wesgro.
Tim Harris, CEO of Wesgro, said it takes concerted effort to retain the number one spot within the industry.
Executive Mayor, Patricia de Lille, said this is encouraging as Cape Town boasts a diverse annual events calendar.
Some of the key gatherings hosted in Cape Town include the South African Innovation Summit, the Mining Indaba and the World Energy Cities Partnership Annual General Meeting. The total of funding for all major business events amounted to approximately R8-million.
De Lille added that it has been part of the City’s Economic Growth Strategy to build the city’s reputation as a place that is open for business.
The City has also launched the Invest Cape Town initiative to strengthen its standing as a business destination.
“We are determined to change the perception that Cape Town is only a top leisure tourism destination. We are the ideal place for the world to meet to talk business,” de Lille said.
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