Meeting
place for the world's route development industry. A place
where every type of airline, airport or tourism authority
from every continent can meet face-to-face in a single
location, whether they are a flag or a low cost carrier, hub
or regional airport. All at a fraction of the time and cost
of the airports visiting carriers individually.
As
World Routes 2014 drew to a close, this year’s hosts Chicago
Department of Aviation and Choose Chicago officially handed
the baton over to the Province of KwaZulu-Natal, South
Africa.
Michael Mabuyakhulu, Provincial Minister of Economic Development, Tourism & Environmental Affairs, told Routes News that hosting World Routes in Durban would be an incredible opportunity and experience for KwaZulu-Natal.
“We are the most popular tourism destination for all South Africans and more international visitors are now sampling our attractions every year. Meanwhile, Durban is South Africa’s premier port, handling more than 80 million tonnes of cargo a year, and the region is recognised as the country’s biggest manufacturing hub.”
Many of the region’s key stakeholders have joined forces in support of World Routes 2015, including the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development, Tourism & Environmental Affairs; Tourism KwaZulu-Natal; Trade & Investment KwaZulu-Natal; Airports Company of South Africa; King Shaka International Airport; Dube TradePort; Durban & KZN Convention Bureau and eThekwini Municipality.
Mabuyakhulu believes that hosting the event will further assist the province in securing more direct air linkages with the rest of the world, which he sees as “essential for accelerating the region’s radical economic growth”, especially in the tourism sector.
“We are
very fortunate to have leaders who understand that when you
pull together, you have a far greater chance at success;
that has been the driving force behind our achievements,” he
added.
King
Shaka International Airport is a brand new multi-billion
rand investment that opened in May 2010, just ahead of the
FIFA World Cup football tournament. The airport, along with
its adjacent industrial development zone, the Dube TradePort,
provides world-class multimodal transport and trade
logistics that is enhancing the country’s intercontinental
passenger travel and freight transfer.
Noting
that conservative projections put African growth for the
next 20 years at over 5%, he hinted: “We are involved in
some very intense negotiations with a number of airlines at
the moment and we are hoping to have some new route
announcements either before or during World Routes 2015.”
“World
Routes is the equivalent of the World Cup of Aviation, so
our hosting of the event definitely adds a new dimension to
our efforts in developing routes.
“We
want delegates to know that we are ready to welcome them:
Durban is ready, KwaZulu-Natal is ready and Africa is ready;
we look forward to welcoming you next September,”
Mabuyakhulu added.
