Diamond Arrow for tourism body

The hard work and dedication of the small team of the Johannesburg Tourism Company has paid off again, with another award handed to them.
YET another PMR Diamond Arrow Award has been added to the Johannesburg Tourism Company’s list of honours, this time for its contribution to promoting tourism and conservation in the city.

JTC CEO Lindiwe KweleJTC CEO Lindiwe Kwele: JTC team passionate about their workThe Diamond Arrow Award, the highest accolade in the awards, was handed to the company at the annual Professional Management Review Magazine’s Africa Leaders and Achievers Awards Breakfast, held at The Hyatt Regency Hotel in Rosebank on Monday, 3 October.

It scooped the same award in 2010.

Lindiwe Kwele, the chief executive officer of the Johannesburg Tourism Company (JTC), attributed the honour to the hard work and dedication put in by staff members. “The JTC team is a small, dedicated team of individuals who are passionate about their work, and it is wonderfully encouraging to receive this type of unsolicited recognition from our peers and stakeholders,” she said.

The Diamond Arrow Award recognises companies that have done the most in the past year to promote tourism and conservation in the city. Category achievers are rated in the annual survey by 250 chief executives, managing directors, owners of companies, company directors and senior local and provincial government officials, based on their contribution to economic growth and development of the city.

Kwele said tourism remained an economic imperative on the City’s agenda going into the long-term Growth and Development Strategy GDS2040.

Joburg has a thriving second economyJoburg has a thriving second economyTourism was a catalyst for the expansion of the small, medium and micro enterprise sector, and also encouraged the growth of a vibrant second economy.

The JTC’s mission was to attract visitors to the city, encourage them to stay longer and spend more, as well as improve seasonality patterns and the spread of visitors across Joburg, Kwele explained.

She added that the company was focused on positioning Johannesburg not only as the continent’s leading hub, but also as an exciting, vibrant year-round destination for signature events, lifestyle, the arts, culture, fashion, sports and mega events.

The JTC has scooped a number of significant awards already, including South Africa’s Leading Managers from the CRF institute for 2008/09 and 2009/10; the Sustainability and Responsible Tourism Award and the award for Africa’s Leading Tourism Project in the World Travel Awards in 2010.