Cape Town Carnival an Economic Boost, says Minister Alan Winde | Western Cape Government

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Cape Town Carnival an Economic Boost, says Minister Alan Winde

5 February 2014

The Cape Town Carnival, one of the city’s biggest street celebrations, is a key driver for job creation and skills development for hundreds of local residents.

Alan Winde, Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism, spoke at the launch of the fifth Cape Town Carnival this evening (5 February 2014).

This year’s carnival is themed “Imagine” and takes place on the Fanwalk in Green Point on 15 March, in the middle of the Western Cape’s peak events season.

Minister Winde said the Cape Town Carnival held major economic benefits for residents, while also providing a platform for the celebration of the diversity of the Western Cape’s cultural traditions.

“The Cape Town Carnival illustrates the significance of cultural tourism and how this region can offer visitors very unique experiences. It is also playing an important role in job creation: 642 work opportunities were created last year, the majority of which were for youth. These young people have the opportunity to shadow and assist experienced artisans allowing them to obtain valuable on the job experience.

“The carnival also provides a boost for local entrepreneurs in the clothing industry, particularly for small Cut, Make and Trim (CMT) businesses. For instance, the carnival’s costume department spent R350 000 with local suppliers last year,” said Minister Winde.

Minister Winde said the Cape Town Carnival illustrated the importance of the events economy for the Western Cape. Major events hosted in the Western Cape generated R1.3 billion for the provincial economy in the previous financial year. It is estimated that these events attracted 196 600 tourists.

Minister Winde said the Cape Town Carnival was already a key fixture in the city’s events season and stood to become one of Cape Town’s iconic celebrations. Minister Winde urged all residents and visitors in the city to attend the event where close to 2 000 performers will accompany the brightly coloured floats.

“The Western Cape is already a top destination for overseas and local visitors. Now we are giving travellers more reasons to visit our province. We have proven ourselves capable of hosting world-class events and the economic benefits of events tourism are clear. This year the Cape Town Carnival takes place against the backdrop of the city hosting the World Design Capital 2014 and I’m looking forward to see how our carnival organisers showcase the WDC 2014 accolade,” said Minister Winde.

Media Enquiries: 

Bronwynne Jooste
Spokesperson for Minister Alan Winde
Ministry of Finance, Economic Development and Tourism
Western Cape Government
Tel: 021 483 3550
Cell: 082 454 4365
E-mail: bronwynne.jooste@westerncape.gov.za