It is morning in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg, and scores of international delegates, hosted buyers, speakers, exhibitors, partners, tourism authorities and industry leaders have gathered under one roof for the Africa Golf Tourism Convention at the ACSA Conference Centre at OR Tambo Airport.
South African singer Noni opens the event with a riveting rendition of Salif Keita’s Africa, a fitting soundtrack for a convention bringing Africa together under one roof.
Minutes later, the inaugural Africa Golf Tourism Convention was officially opened in the City of Ekurhuleni.
The initiative creates Africa’s first dedicated pan-African business-to-business (B2B) platform, bringing together the continent’s diverse golf tourism offerings to create a unified, integrated and investable economic ecosystem.
With unemployment remaining a major economic challenge across Africa, the convention also seeks to position golf as more than just a sport but as a potential engine for job creation, tourism, entrepreneurship and investment.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Founder of the Africa Golf Tourism Convention, Neo Peete, described the event as a continental marketplace connecting golf, tourism, trade and investment.
She said the vision is to move beyond individual golf destinations and encourage international travellers to see Africa as one interconnected golf journey.
“An international traveller who doesn’t simply book one golf destination, but begins to see Africa as a golf journey. Imagine itineraries that connect destinations. Imagine golf and safari circuits. Imagine golf and wine experiences, golf and beach experiences,” she said.
Neo Peete said international buyers could eventually package two or three African countries into a single premium golf itinerary, but this would require greater connectivity, investment and stronger tourism products.
“For that to happen, we need connectivity. We need trade-ready products. We need compelling destination stories. We need investment,” she added.
Upstairs, participating destinations, golf resorts, tourism organisations, airlines, car companies, arts organisations and other industry players had set up exhibition stands, showcasing their tourism products and investment opportunities to delegates.
Co-founder and Exhibition Director of the Africa Golf Tourism Convention, Gisele Masengo, took delegates around the exhibition space.
For the City of Ekurhuleni, hosting the convention was also an opportunity to showcase its tourism assets while attracting investment.
Executive Mayor of the City of Ekurhuleni, Alderman Nkosindiphile Doctor Xhakaza, said the event has helped strengthen the city’s destination marketing efforts and expose its tourism products to an international audience.
“It has helped us to expose some of our city’s greatest facilities and tourism products. It has assisted us in terms of destination marketing.
And, of course, with the brand Ekurhuleni being out there,” he said.
According to the Mayor, attracting investment remained one of the most important benefits of hosting events of this nature.
“Importantly, we get to attract the much-needed investment. Ultimately, it is about bringing in investment and assisting our economies to grow,” he said.
He also encouraged other African cities to take an interest in the emerging golf tourism market and participate in future conversations.
For the Gauteng Tourism Authority, the convention provided another platform to showcase the province while creating market opportunities for local businesses.
CEO of the Gauteng Tourism Authority, Crizelda Venter, said exhibitors were presenting a variety of products and services, including businesses with the potential to expand beyond the local market.
“In terms of the variety of products and services that they offer, we’ve got ones that are still playing in the local space and ones that still have great potential to export to the African market and, hopefully, to the global market as well,” she said.
Ms Venter said Gauteng was also keen to build on the momentum generated by major international golf events, including LIV Golf, which she described as a successful event for the province.
She said the Africa Golf Tourism convention was helping to keep golf tourism on the agenda while creating opportunities for entrepreneurs and SMEs. But she stressed that access to markets remained critical for smaller businesses seeking to grow.
The first day of the main conference, which also featured keynote sessions, business-to-business meetings, destination showcases, exhibitions and networking engagements involving tourism authorities, airlines, investors, golf industry leaders and international media, ended with cocktails and networking, giving delegates an opportunity to connect, exchange ideas and explore potential partnerships beyond the conference floor.
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DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
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