Women across Gauteng province recently gathered at the Cradle of Humankind Visitor Centre, Maropeng located in Mogale City for the Gauteng Women in Tourism (GauWiT) Provincial Chapter official launch. GauWiT is a National Department of Tourism initiative in partnership with Gauteng Department of Economic Development which aims to create a platform for advancing radical socio-economic transformation and integration of women from different socio-economic backgrounds and spectrums within the tourism and hospitality sectors in Gauteng.
In her keynote address, Deputy Minister of Tourism Ms Elizabeth Thabethe said the initiative was formed to address challenges that women in the tourism and hospitality sectors are faced with. “The GauWiT Chapter was formed to address impediments hindering socio-economic development and general advancement of women in the tourism and hospitality sector. This was done through consultations with Gauteng’s five regions namely Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, Sedibeng, West Rand and Johannesburg,” she said.
The deputy minister went on to say that while women comprise nearly 70% of the workforce in South Africa, they still hold less than 40% of managerial roles and between 5% and 8% of board or decision-making positions in the sector.
In light of these statistics, GauWiT Chairperson Thoba Mavimbela-Karlhalla said there is a need to transition women from employees to entrepreneurs. “Tourism, particularly in emerging markets, plays an integral role in growing the local economy and as with most industries, women in this sector face the unenviable task of having to break through glass ceilings to move from employment to ownership,” Mavimbela-Karlhalla said.
She went on to add that GauWiT Chapter will open market access and linkages for women owned businesses and push for recognition of outstanding women leadership at all levels in the tourism space.
The launch was also a platform for dialogue on the challenges that affect the socio-economic empowerment of women, funding constraints, the establishment of support structures and incentives.