Investors in the travel and tourism sector have been advised to be patient when they invest in the sector.
This issue was brought to the fore during the maiden African Tourism Investment Summit held in Cape Town South Africa from the 11 -12 April 2019.
In her address during the opening day at the summit Ms Shamilla Chettiar the Deputy Director-General, Destination Development, at the Department of Tourism-South Africa advised investors that tourism investment requires “patient capital”.
“We need investors that understand that tourism does not have a quick turnaround for return on investments. Investors won’t see results within a year. If you wait patiently, in 5 yrs you will see the reward of your investment- but you’re most likely to see real benefits in 10-20 years. “
She added that patient capital is vital in building the tourism economy and investors in the travel and tourism space should bear that in mind.
Ms Chettiar presented the keynote address at the conference.
The inaugural maiden African tourism investment summit was part of this year’s World Travel Market-Africa which was held in Cape Town a fortnight ago. The summit is intended to leverage upon WTM’s global brand to develop a platform that will allow potential investors to scope tourism development projects and become familiar with opportunities across the continent.
