In what has been hailed as a ground-breaking initiative to help the country get closer to the goal of attracting 21 million visitors to South Africa, the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) has partnered with world-renowned comedian, Trevor Noah, to promote South African tourism.
The “Best of Us” campaign will see the South African-born comedian showcase the country through a series of packaged video-adverts which will be seen by millions of potential visitors around the world.
TBCSA says the bigger objective is positioning South Africa as a destination of choice for global travellers.
The launch of the campaign took place on 9 November, at the Leonardo Hotel in Sandton, Johannesburg.
The “Best of Us” campaign is targeted at travellers from the rest of the African continent and source markets such as Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.
The TBCSA says it is confident that Trevor Noah’s global appeal and deep connection to South Africa places him among the great league of exports produced by South Africa, making him the perfect ambassador for the tourism sector.
“Trevor Noah is a true South African at heart and having him as the voice of the South African tourism sector will have great benefits for the sector. He is a global brand loved by people all over the world, and his partnership with the TBCSA is a major coup. I am confident that Trevor will help us to position South Africa as the destination of choice for global travellers.” – TBCSA CEO, Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa
The newly launched campaign has been welcomed by provincial leaders, including Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis and Premier Alan Winde.
This as many of the scenes in the video shows off the beauty of Cape Town and the Western Cape.
It comes as local tourism authorities predict a bumper tourism season for the Western Cape this summer.
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Meanwhile, the CEO of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa, Tshifhiwa Tshivhenga, has refused to disclose how much Trevor Noah was paid for the advertisement.
In September, there were rumours that Noah was paid around R33 million for the five-minute-long advertisement. Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille clarified that no state money was spent on the campaign.
Tshivhenga says Trevor Noah was definitely not paid R33 million.