Much of the news about the South African economy in recent months suggests that we are facing times tough ahead. With the International Monetary Fund's July 2016 projection for growth in the economy of just 0.1 % in 2016 and ongoing fears about a ratings agency downgrade to junk status, the general view is that investor confidence is low, money is tight and business is slow.

Compounding issues are the worrying employment figures. The most recent official unemployment statistics indicate that at least one in every four people in the country who could be working is not.

Are there businesses that can focus on improving the economy? Merely waiting for some external force to intervene, does not appear to be a viable long-term solution.

We need to be identifying the areas in our economy where expansion and job creation is possible. The industry I know best, travel and tourism, could be one such area.

According to the World Travel & Tourism Council, the industry globally is set to outperform the economy for the next decade at least, providing annual growth of around 4% on average. And, locally, our Tourism Minister, Derek Hanekom, has stated that, "Tourism will earn R120 billion in export earnings, and contribute more than R380 billion to the economy…[in the 2016/17 year]." These figures also come with the prediction of many more jobs being created.

There is plenty of evidence in practice that supports this. For instance, the latest air passenger numbers released by the Airports Company South Africa in its most recent Aviation Barometer, reflect that there was an increase in passenger numbers at South African airports year-on-year in the first and second quarters this year, as opposed to 2015. We have also seen new air routes introduced by a number of airlines, and plans are afoot for extensions to the domestic air terminals in Johannesburg and Cape Town. The new international airport at Victoria Falls is another positive in terms of attracting visitors to our region.

In addition, for many years there has been much to be positive about in terms of infrastructure development in the hotel industry. In fact, over the past 20 years there has always been a 6-year cycle of new hotel developments to cope with the increase in demand for hotel rooms. And, with the anticipated traveller numbers for the Football World Cup in 2010, construction projects during 2008 and 2009 saw Cape Town gaining 2 500 and Johannesburg 2 000 rooms.

The next three years promise to continue the trend with many new projects for Cape Town – some have already been completed and others in the pipeline. The city still remains popular among tourists, and for the film and the incentives industries. I am concerned, however, that the plans for the pipeline of new hotels for Johannesburg is lagging behind. Since there are so many added air flights coming into the city, visitor numbers will certainly increase but new construction projects are too limited to provide for the demand. The two new Marriott hotel properties to be built in Johannesburg's Melrose Arch area will assist with the demand but more is needed.

The confidence is also evident in the conference market: a new conference centre recently opened in Cape Town and there are currently additions underway at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

The challenge we have to rise to is for government to facilitate an environment that allows for ease of travel, for the country to improve its image with regards to safety and security, and for the industry itself to continuously maintain service standards and skills. If we get this right, we may just find that economic growth will rise above the current 0%.

Bonny Feldman
Irvine Bartlett
+27 21 4624033
Marriott