National Treasury has posted a comprehensive draft Tourism Public Private Partnership's (PPPs) Toolkit on the internet for public comment. It has been compiled in collaboration with the Department of Environmental Affairs & Tourism (DEAT) and a host of national and provincial conservation and tourism departments and public entities, together with the Development Bank of Southern Africa, the Industrial Development Corporation, SANParks, SA Tourism, the Tourism Business Council, and the National Business Initiative.
Once finalised, the Toolkit will be issued as a National Treasury PPP practice note in terms of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA), and will be applicable to all national and provincial government departments and public entities wishing to pursue PPPs that offer commercial tourism opportunities on state conservation land.
The Toolkit aims to bring consistency and certainty to how these PPPs are implemented, and to inspire investor confidence. It is primarily a step-by-step guide to government, in line with Treasury Regulation 16 to the PFMA. It targets a wide range of potential projects - from small SMME-type tourism ventures to largescale investments in accommodation and related services.
The Toolkit applies the recently released BEE Tourism Charter and Scorecard to a standardised set of procurement processes and PPP agreement terms for both SMME and large-scale tourism PPPs.
The growing contribution of the tourism industry to the South African economy and job creation is well known. This Toolkit seeks to boost this strategic sector by providing a set of practical best practice guidelines for tourism PPPs. The intention is that government institutions and private parties will be able to apply these tools without re-inventing the feasibility methods, procurement systems and contract terms for each project. This should both speed up project implementation and protect against costly mistakes.
For more information please contact Sue Lund, Senior Project Advisor, PPP Unit National Treasury on 012315 5027 or 082-898 5758 or Mahandra Naidoo, Chief Director Tourism, Department Of Environmental Affairs & Tourism on 012-310 3846 Or 082-371 5164.