Programme Director,
Premier of the Free State province, Honourable Ace Magashule,
MEC for Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Mr Mosebenzi Zwane,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Members of the media.

I’m excited to join you on this important day of launching and at the same time handing over of 5 modern facilities which I am confident will boost tourism in your province. Like the birth of an eagerly awaited child in the family, the handing over of these 5 facilities is a historic moment which brings the same level of excitement to all of us. Upgrading of a sixth facility is nearing completion and will be handed over in due course.

Before I get carried away, please allow me to start by making an apology on behalf of the department for not implementing the launch late in April. You would recall that the month of April was on the eve of the 2014 national elections in which we had a very tight programme to seek your renewed mandate to govern. Nevertheless, we merely shifted the time and we are here today.

Coming back to our story, we should consider ourselves very lucky to live in this great country. South Africa is a unique country with an abundance of natural treasures, spectacular scenic beauty, warm and friendly people and amazing wildlife both terrestrial and aquatic. The combination of all these factors has made our country one of the world's fastest growing leisure travel destinations catering for every tourism niche, from business, eco and cultural tourism through to adventure and sport tourism.

Much of the natural and scenic beauty is found in the Free State province making tourism a critical sector in the province’s offensive against poverty and unemployment.You have five major dams for sports tourism. Three of the major rivers in South Africa borders the Free State and you have the Vredefort Dome World Heritage Site to mention but a few.

Your province is also home to many historically significant events that has shaped the history of our country; principally the founding of the African National Congress in the Weslyan Church in Waaihoek and your province also hosted the ANC Centenary celebration.

The importance of the tourism system for economic development in the Free State has been clearly acknowledged in the development strategies and plans for the province. The province has indicated its intention to capture a greater share of the tourism system and its benefits, particularly in terms of employment creation and capital investment.

As the Department of Environmental Affairs, we will support, where appropriate, the province in dealing with the numerous constraints that impact on the province’s abililty to capture a greater share of the tourism market. A key constraint to tourism development in many of our provinces, including the Free State relates mainly to the improvement of physical infrastructure for tourism development.

Our decision to invest more than a R125 million in these 6 projects must therefore be seen in this context. The investment was also motivated by the fact that South Africa is the world’s third largest country in terms of biodiversity and we have made a conscious decision to preserve and protect our biodiversity through the link with tourism. As a department, we hold strong conviction that people who derive their joy and livelihood from nature would automatically become its ambassadors and defend it against those with intentions to abuse it for short-term selfish interests.

The investment in infrastructure in all of the 6 facilities has followed the Extended Public Works Programme (EPWP) approach of being labour-intensive which ensured more people were absorbed into work opportunities and given exposure to a variety of skills. Allow me to briefly highlight some of the achievements in respect of the projects.

Sandveld Nature Reserve

The project consisted of the constructing 6 new chalets and the renovation of 10 existing chalets, a new ablution block, relocation of the caravan park to a new caravan site amongst other. It also involved the supply of all chalets with furniture. The total project budget amounted to R28 800 000. It created 195 work opportunities with 76 going to youth, 104 to women and 4 to people with disabilities. The department has further committed R15 000 000, which will be used for pavement of a 5 kilometres entrance road.

Maria Moroka Resort and Reserve

The total budget for this project amounted to R16 000 000. The deliverables of the project wereerection of galvanised razor mesh fence, ground levelling and earthworks, construction of a three bedroom senior staff house, construction of a two bedroom duplex flat, construction of a new entrance gate and the installation of a septic tank amongst other. The Maria Moroka Resort and Reserve Project has managed to create 142 work opportunities with 76 going to youth, 104 to women and 4 disabled.

Willem Pretorius Nature Reserve

With a project budget of R27 500 000, the project deliverables included renovation of existing infrastructure including 10 Chalets, administration building, Conference Hall, caravan shower & toilets, paving of the Resort Roads, construction of a water treatment plant and the construction of a low level bridge over the sand river (60m long) The project employed 243 beneficiaries of which 135 were women, 98 youth and 5 people living with disability.

Tussen die Rivier Resort and Reserve

The Tussen die Rivier Resort and Reserve was completed with a project budget of R10 000 000. A total of 134 beneficiaries were employed with 50 being women, 36 youth and 2 people with disabilities.

Sterkfontein Resort and Reserve

The Sterkfontein Resort and Reserve project is currently under implementation and the deliverables at the Reserve are Site clearance, construction of the staff houses, three offices with a guard house, electricity connections and fittings and laying of paving and the construction of new environmental centre. The total budget for the project is R17 800 000. The project employed 163 beneficiaries during the implementation phase, of those employed 87 were woman, 63 youth and 3 people with disabilities.

Seekoevlei Nature Reserve

This project was completed with a budget of R10 278 000 and through its implementation we were able to create 53 jobs with the majority of these jobs having gone to women and youth.

It is important to note that both accredited and non-accredited training opportunities have been created for the local people equipping them with the necessary skills that will enable them to find employment in other employment opportunities when they exit from the projects.

Apart from these projects our department has approved projects with an amount value of R248 500 000 to the province for the new funding cycle. These projects will not only create work opportunities but will also create the necessary infrastructure for waste management, infrastructure in the protected areas as well as encouraging greener environment management practices.

The world is currently experiencing a setback in tourism industry because of the outbreak of the ebola disease which is leading to trips cancellation.  However, domestic tourism is also an important source of revenue and employment and it accounts for about 52% of total tourism consumption.

Our country's private game reserves and lodges range in standard from middle to very upmarket, with ultra-luxury lodges. The managers of these facilities should note that there is a lucrative market for every facility and should embark on less expensive local marketing of this new offering.

Conclusion

Biodiversity is the main catalyst for tourism’s growth and as a department, we will always encourage this mutual beneficial relationship. In this relationship, both nature and tourism are the winners and bound to lookout for each other.  Tourism safeguards our nature and the symbiotic relationship injects economic growth estimated at hundreds of billions of Rands.

Based on its untapped potential, the government has set itself an ambitious but achievable target of increasing tourism contribution to R499 billion to the GDP by 2020. Since tourism supports one in every 12 jobs in South Africa, the Free State province has an opportunity to position itself not only to share but increase its stake in the big tourism cake.

As I conclude, I wish to say to the Free State government, it is now in your hands.

Thank you!