Canaan Mdletshe
Canaan Mdletshe
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sbu Ndebele has called on all the people of the province to use the Zulu brand to its fullest for the benefit of the province during the 2010 World Cup.
Ndebele was speaking yesterday in Durban during the second provincial strategic indaba.
He said KwaZulu-Natal has one of the most recognisable brands in the world, which it only needs to build on.
He even compared the Zulu brand to the most recognisable brands in the world like Coca-Cola and Mercedes-Benz.
"It is a fact that anywhere in the world brands such as Mercedes-Benz or Coca-Cola are among the most recognisable.
"Not far from that is the Zulu brand. Municipalities will have to define the Zulu brand and sell it to our visitors during the preliminary draw.
"You can go anywhere in the world and when you tell people you are from South Africa, they would ask you whether you are a Zulu," said Ndebele.
He said the brand should be defined through the courteous and "royal" treatment of guests at the airports when they arrive, and "make sure they do not want to go back to the airport when it is time to leave".
"The totality of their experience must be such that they all want to come back to our province in the time leading up to 2010 and beyond," he said.
He said municipalities, traditional leadership, civil society and non-governmental organisations will be crucial in spreading the benefits to the entire province.
The call comes barely a year after the Zulu monarch, King Goodwill Zwelithini, launched a scathing attack on the provincial department of arts, culture and tourism as well as Tourism KwaZulu-Natal, for branding the province as a Zulu Kingdom, but having nothing to show.
Zwelithini said there was not even a single picture or a plaque, or portrait of him or previous Zulu kings to prove this was a Zulu kingdom.
He said there should be pictures of the kings at airports or on billboards.
So far, there is only one statue of King Cetshwayo next to that of General Botha at the city entrance.
Premier wants to see a global marquee, king wants to see statues
Canaan Mdletshe
Canaan Mdletshe
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sbu Ndebele has called on all the people of the province to use the Zulu brand to its fullest for the benefit of the province during the 2010 World Cup.
Ndebele was speaking yesterday in Durban during the second provincial strategic indaba.
He said KwaZulu-Natal has one of the most recognisable brands in the world, which it only needs to build on.
He even compared the Zulu brand to the most recognisable brands in the world like Coca-Cola and Mercedes-Benz.
"It is a fact that anywhere in the world brands such as Mercedes-Benz or Coca-Cola are among the most recognisable.
"Not far from that is the Zulu brand. Municipalities will have to define the Zulu brand and sell it to our visitors during the preliminary draw.
"You can go anywhere in the world and when you tell people you are from South Africa, they would ask you whether you are a Zulu," said Ndebele.
He said the brand should be defined through the courteous and "royal" treatment of guests at the airports when they arrive, and "make sure they do not want to go back to the airport when it is time to leave".
"The totality of their experience must be such that they all want to come back to our province in the time leading up to 2010 and beyond," he said.
He said municipalities, traditional leadership, civil society and non-governmental organisations will be crucial in spreading the benefits to the entire province.
The call comes barely a year after the Zulu monarch, King Goodwill Zwelithini, launched a scathing attack on the provincial department of arts, culture and tourism as well as Tourism KwaZulu-Natal, for branding the province as a Zulu Kingdom, but having nothing to show.
Zwelithini said there was not even a single picture or a plaque, or portrait of him or previous Zulu kings to prove this was a Zulu kingdom.
He said there should be pictures of the kings at airports or on billboards.
So far, there is only one statue of King Cetshwayo next to that of General Botha at the city entrance.
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