Deconstructing the role of Tourism Stakeholder Engagement in the Northern Cape Province.

Abstract

This study sought to investigate selected stakeholder perspectives on the levels of engagement with regards to tourism in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. The roles of prominent tourism stakeholders (SAT, NDT, provincial and local government, NGOs) were explored to confirm if they are clearly stipulated and understood by selected tourism stakeholders in improving the tourism sector of the Northern Cape Province. The intention was to identify the factors that have the potential of achieving or hindering the South African government’s economic growth agenda with regards to the tourism industry. To this end, this study is undertaken in the context of the specific tourism environment of the Northern Cape. Interviews were conducted with the relevant stakeholders. This provided rich insights into the tourism stakeholders in the Northern Cape Province as far as policy application, public private partnership, national support and future planning are concerned. These theoretical findings offer important managerial implications for the tourism sector in the Northern Cape to create an effective and a valuable tourist destination. This study attempts to contribute towards the tourism efforts of the Northern Cape, by suggesting a paradigm shift towards a stakeholder engagement perspective as an alternative approach for the improvement of the tourism sector and its contribution to economic growth.

Keywords

• Northern Cape
• Stakeholder engagement
• Tourism
• Government agenda