Winde awarded prestigious Karl Twiggs award

WESTERN CAPE NEWS - With the tourism recovery in full swing in Cape Town and South Africa lifting its State of Disaster regulations earlier this month, the Skål International Cape Town club was thrilled to host a members networking event on 12 April at the iconic Cullinan Hotel.

This event took place during World Travel Market (WTM) Africa 2022, the first in-person international trade show to be hosted in South Africa since the start of the pandemic in 2020.

Western Cape Premier Alan Winde was instrumental in guiding the recovery programme of the Western Cape over the last 24 months and placed strategic pressure on various bodies and arms of government to ease restrictions and allow for accelerated tourism industry rehabilitation - in a sector that provides major jobs throughout its interconnected value chain.

Therefore Skål International, together with its South African oversight division and Cape Town club, was honoured to present the globally recognised Karl Twiggs Award to Winde for his efforts within the travel and tourism industry at this prestigious event that brought together Skål International members and delegates from all over the globe.

The annual floating trophy was presented by the president of Skål International Cape Town, Dawn Smith, together with 2019 Skål International world president 2019 Lavonne Wittmann.

Winde noted that it was a team effort to coordinate all provincial resources to fight for every job and every possible recovery opportunity.

"We value the importance of this sector, not just in the Western Cape, but globally, and while we fully understand the impact of the virus on the health of our people, it is equally important to push for economic stability," he said. "This award comes at a key milestone just as South Africa announced the end of the two-year State of Disaster. A special thanks also goes to our minister, Nomafrench Mbombo."

Dawn Smith of Skål International Cape Town said she hopes to see the industry boom as the sector reignites its passion for people. "Tourism is about relationships and the people that work in it, who are resilient beings in every sense of the word, made up of strength, compassion, and inspiration. It's a brand-new day for the tourism industry."

Skål International was founded in 1934 and is the largest community of travel and tourism professionals that gather monthly on city club level and leverage global connections and networks to promote tourism: doing business among friends.

The Karl Twiggs Award is named after the 2004 president of Skål International who introduced the accolade to be bestowed on an individual and/or group that has made an invaluable contribution to the sector.

Delegates at the event shared recovery stories and strategies of the last two years, reconnected at a personal level and discussed the road map to full recovery during the WTM Africa hosted at the Cape Town International Convention Centre from 11 to 13 April.

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