Page 63 - TKZN Annual Report 2023/2024

generated influencer collaborations remained very active throughout the year and have seen a positive incline as combined audiences are over 221,937 followers. The MyKZN Facebook page and blogs ran competitions that promoted destination experiences and products throughout KZN, thereby promoting the myriad of experiences available in the destination for tourists to explore.
Customer Care
TKZN continued with championing improved customer care and service excellence within the sector. TKZN’s Customer Care unit attended stakeholder engagement workshops in various districts such as uThukela, King Cetshwayo and Harry Gwala to capacitate government officials and local tourism trade stakeholders with information, knowledge and tools necessary to drive towards enhanced service levels and improved customer care. During the year under review, stronger relations were forged with institutions of higher learning where 40 KZN tourism Ambassadors, who were unemployed tourism graduates, were deployed during Africa’s Travel Indaba 2023 and the 2023 BRICS Conference. This initiative provided job opportunities to the unemployed graduates who assisted delegates by providing information on things to do and places to visit during their stay in Durban and KZN.
Tourism awareness programmes, career expos and business compliance inspections emphasizing the importance of customer care for tourists were conducted throughout the year. A relatively high level of Inter-Governmental Relations was seen especially during tourism awareness activations in various community and trade business engagements that were conducted with EDTEA and its entities. The Customer Care unit played a pivotal role in resolving customer complaints that related to tourism establishments, monitored incidents involving tourists, and coordinated interventions like refunds through engagement with operators.
LINKING PERFORMANCE WITH BUDGET
PROGRAMME
2022/23
2023/24
Public Relations and Communications
Budget
Actual Expenditure
Variance
Budget
Actual Expenditure
Variance
R’000
50 112
46 134
3 978
36 461
38 411
(1 950)
Measurable objective
Programme Performance indicator
Annual Target (APP) 2022/22
Actual Performance
Variance
Comments
Increase rand value on media coverage received about the destination
Percentage positive media coverage
80%
80%
R224 735 843.00
0
Achieved
Enhance destination brand awareness through events
Number of destination awareness interventions implemented
12
17
+5
Achieved
TOURISM KWAZULU-NATAL ANNUAL REPORT 2023/2024 61