Cape Town - Several events at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) have been cancelled or postponed due to fears surrounding the coronavirus or Covid-19.
The CTICC hosts a number of international exhibitions, conferences and other major events, with visitors from across the globe.
The CTICC said: “In the wake of developments surrounding Covid-19, we have seen a proactive global trend to prevent and minimise the spread and impact of the virus within conferencing and events industry. As a business, we face the same challenges as our global counterparts, and we have unfortunately been affected by event cancellations and postponements.”
As a precautionary measure, the CTICC said it had appointed ER24 as an in-house medical response provider.
“ER24 has a well-rehearsed containment management plan in place. Our on-site medics are trained in Covid-19 response protocols.”
Jazz enthusiasts were recently informed that one of Cape Town Jazz Festival’s (CTIJF) performers, pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, had withdrawn from the festival due to fears around travelling because of the virus.
“We respect the decision taken by the artist and the CTIJF remains committed to bringing the best in jazz and jazz-related music to the Mother City. The festival will be going ahead as planned on March 27 and 28 and we will announce a suitable replacement,” said festival director Billy Domingo.
The CTIJF said it was working with the provincial Health Department, Wesgro and Cape Town Tourism but no travel advisory had been issued against travel to South Africa.
Last Thursday, Cape Town Tourism and others attended a briefing by the City to address the potential negative impact of Covid-19 on tourism.
Chief executive Enver Duminy said: “While Cape Town has no confirmed cases of Covid-19, we’re preparing a toolkit for the local tourism industry, who may have questions. Additionally, while health authorities will have the primary role should a tourist visiting Cape Town be diagnosed with Covid-19
while in the city, we will be on hand to provide assistance through our Band-Aid programme.”
It was confirmed that the World Travel Market (WTM) Africa, would go ahead next month. This is expected to generate around $451million (R7billion) of business over three days.
“We’re pleased to hear that WTM Africa and other signature events like the Cape Epic and Cape Town Carnival will continue to happen. This demonstrates our resolve to grow the tourism economy while being mindful that we can't be complacent with this virus. We encourage these events to not only promote good hygiene practices to visitors as a precautionary measure, but to encourage their staff to adopt healthy sanitation habits,” said Duminy.
Mayco member for safety and security JP Smith said the City would be working with event organisers and the provincial government to ensure the medical plans, as part of the event permitting process, took into consideration Covid-19. “Cape Town this past weekend successfully hosted the Cape Town Cycle Tour, with over 30000 participants, which put in place protocols to mitigate any possible outbreak.”
A total of seven people have now tested positive for Covid-19 in the country.
@TheCapeArgus