Open letter to Lindiwe Mabuza, South Africa's ambassador to the UK

Open letter to Lindiwe Mabuza, South Africa's ambassador to the UK

I write as a patriotic South African citizen living in London. Every morning I have the pleasure of walking past South Africa House on my way to work and it puts a spring in my step to think of home.

I recently noticed that the displays promoting South Africa as a tourist destination look rather sad and faded. The posters are peeling and the sun has bleached the colours.

The Trafalgar Square location is at the very heart of one of London's prime tourist destinations and enjoys unparalleled footfall traffic by the people who we should be luring to our wonderful country right now. This is particularly unfortunate if you compare our display with other embassies and high commissions that do not enjoy our advantageous location.

Tourism has been one of our great employment growth areas in recent years and with the natural beauty, amazingly friendly people and great weather our country is blessed with, it's not surprising we have done very well.

International tourism is very competitive and we should utilise all our assets, including this prime location.

I do online marketing and have a background in PR and design. I could bring these skills to the table.

Our country has a great future but it is up to all of us to help ensure we reach our full potential.

Jason Bird, London