Executive Mayor Plato checks in at Cape Town International Airport

1 October 2019

‘Cape Town International Airport (CTIA) is a world-class facility and is a worthy contender for the World’s Leading Airport award. The Airport is a vibrant and busy space which processes 11 million passengers each year. The facility is the first impression that people get when arriving in the city and tourists and locals experience its efficiency. The airport has already been recognised as the best on the continent and we are now aiming to make it the best airport in the world. We are competing against Dubai, Cancun and Melbourne, among others, for the global title and we need your vote to take home this award,’ said Executive Mayor Dan Plato.

Cape Town is currently the holder of the ‘World’s Leading Festival and Events Destination’. At the recent Africa and Indian Ocean World Travel Awards in June this year, Cape Town was again voted ‘Africa’s Leading Festival and Events Destination’ for the second consecutive time. Table Mountain won the title of ‘Africa’s Leading Tourist Attraction’ and Cape Town International Airport won ‘Africa’s Leading Airport’. All three contenders are now in the running for the prestigious world title at the 2019 World Travel Awards.

‘We never take for granted the recognition we receive and remain humbled by it. Our success is a tribute to our airport partners. We work in close collaboration with our airline partners, retailers, government agencies and service providers as we do with the City and the Province. We work hard to make a positive contribution to the tourism value chain in our region. We are gearing up to improve our airport offering even further through major infrastructure developments. Thank you to all who continue to support CTIA,’ said Cape Town International Airport General Manager, Deon Cloete.

‘Cape Town International Airport is set to undergo a massive expansion programme to the value of R7 billion over the next 5 years. This capital investment will make a meaningful contribution to the local economy through much needed employment and business expansion opportunities. The team at the Enterprise and Investment Department is working with the CTIA to see how they can maximize the benefit of businesses as part of the construction process and what job creation opportunities there are for surrounding communities,’ said Alderman James Vos, Mayoral Committee Member for Economic Opportunities and Asset Management.

The tourism sector contributes significantly to the local economy, as it supports 300 000 employment opportunities.

Mayor Plato added, ‘ We believe that if we win these awards, they will serve as a reflection of all the hard work we put in towards growing this sector, as well as all that hard work put in by the many tourism stakeholders, and could result in an upturn in the amount of tourists visiting our beautiful city. Cape Town values the role of the tourism industry as a critical sector for job creation and we encourage everyone to vote for Cape Town at https://www.worldtravelawards.com.’

Voting closes at midnight on 20 October 2019.

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