The South African Tourism Board has announced the appointment of new Awards Committee members, of the Tourism Grading Council of South Africa (TGCSA). The committee is responsible for overseeing the implementation and management of the TGCSA’S grading system, South Africa’s only officially recognised system for the star grading of accommodation and business events venues.
The members of the TGCSA Awards Committee are:
New members
Nombeko Rwaxa, Owner of Zizwe Guesthouse based in Soweto;
Hapiloe Sello, Managing Executive of Tourism Development and Marketing at SANPARKS;
Tshifiwa Tshivhengwa, CEO of FEDHASA;
Rosemarie Van Staden, Owner and Managing Director for The Angel’s Place Boutique Hotel;
Lindiwe Sangweni-Siddo, Divisional Director for Operations of City Lodge Hotel Group;
Enver Duminy, CEO Cape Town Tourism
Retained members
Graham Wood, Chairperson
Ravi Nadasen, Director of Operations at Tsogo Sun;
Lindiwe Rakharebe, CEO of Durban ICC;
Amor Malan, Member of the South African Tourism Board;
Mmaditonki Setwaba, Member of the South African Tourism Board;
Jegie Padmanathan, Group Hotel Operations and Development Executive for Peermont;
Wendy Alberts, CEO of the Restaurant Association of South Africa (RASA); and
Johanna Mukoki, Group CEO of Travel with Flair.
Mr Graham Wood who is a member of the South African Tourism Board retained his position as the Chairperson of the Awards Committee. He welcomed the appointment of new members and thanked the previous committee for their valued inputs and commitment in ensuring that South Africa has a globally competitive star grading system.
“I look forward to working with the new committee members as they inject much needed innovative thinking into how we best position the country’s official quality assurance system. As a collective, we have a duty to both industry and travelers to ensure that star grading in South Africa is globally benchmarked, credible, and most importantly, reliable to those that use it as appoint of reference when making their choice of tourism products,” said Wood.
The appointment of the new members was also welcomed by Darryl Erasmus, Chief Quality Assurance Officer, at South African Tourism. “The Awards Committee comprises a collective of individuals who possess profound knowledge about the industry and this knowledge will, no doubt, impact positively on the business of the Tourism Grading Council over the Committee’s two-year tenure. This comes at an opportune time when we are in the middle of the triennial review of our grading criteria and minimum requirements of entry. The committee’s role in this process is a critical one in laying its terms of reference,” said Erasmus.
“ On behalf of the team at the Grading Council, I extend heartfelt congratulations and welcome to all new members and we all look forward to working with them,” concluded Erasmus.
For more information visit www.tourismgrading.co.za
