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Culture combined
with tourism and sport in a magnificent spectacle on Saturday, May 8 at
the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre, Durban,
South Africa, during the opening ceremony of the 2010 INDABA, a travel
fair organised annually by South African Tourism since the 70s.

South Africa’s
world-famous Drakensberg Boys Choir, pop group TKZee and the Drum Cafe
drummers offered peeps into the country’s culture during their
presentations at the ceremony. The Drum Cafe drummers comprising men
and women beat both the top and sides of their drums to produce good
music while the dancers, who incorporated black flips and somersaults
into their steps, did justice to the music.

But the drummers’
performance was nothing compared to that of the boys from the
Drakensberg Mountain. The intermittent applause from the audience
eloquently testified to people’s enchantment with their sonorous voices
and overall performance. While some wore black pants, blue t-shirts and
wellington boots, others were dressed in the beautiful costumes of
their Zulu forbears. The boys also had a use for the soccer balls they
brought to the stage. They incorporated it into the drumbeats by
bouncing them rhythmically on the ground. Naturally, this attracted
more applause from the crowd.

A screening of the
Diski Dance created specially for the World Cup which starts on June 11
was part of the menu at the colourful ceremony emceed by SABC’s Carol
Manana. Groups of people doing the dance across the world; South
Africa’s President, Jacob Zuma trying out the steps and an elephant’s
funny attempt, attracted chuckles from the audience.

We are ready

South African
president, Jacob Zuma proudly declared in his speech at the evening of
culture and sports that South Africa was ready for the world. “South
Africa is ready for the World Cup. We look forward to welcoming the
world, to hosting the world and to celebrating with the rest of the
continent, the first World Cup here in Africa.” He also highlighted the
benefits of the soccer fiesta to the country’s economy. “The World Cup
has changed the face of this country. Not only has it revitalised our
economy, but it has given impetus to infrastructural development and
job creation. It is estimated that over 3.6 million additional job
opportunities will be created during the tournament. This is a welcome
boost for the industry and for many South Africans. Of particular
importance to millions of South Africans and also visitors to our
country is the revitalisation of our public transport network.”

Zuma noted the
gains of the tournament to the country’s tourism, information
technology, sports and culture. “After the tournament, South Africa
will have more skilled people working in tourism and better tourism
infrastructure to grow arrivals and foreign direct spending into the
economy. The World Cup will also deliver about 350,000 more foreign
visitors this year that will, in the medium to long-term, result in
greater repeat visits and word-of-mouth recommendations for the
destination.

“South Africa’s 10
World Cup-ready football stadiums give [the country] truly magnificent,
capable and world class sports venues. They give the world a capable
destination for global sporting and cultural events such as the world
cups of other sporting codes, the Olympic Games and music concerts.”

Welcome to heaven

Earlier, eThekwini
Deputy Mayor, Logie Naidoo had sold the tourism sites of Durban in
superlatives to the gathered delegates. He described the city as the
“land of great kings and leaders” including Shaka and Mahatma Gandhi.
Durban, he added, is home to two World Heritage Sites and the Zulu
nation. Naidoo welcomed people to ‘heaven’ because Zulu means heaven in
English.

Premier of
KwaZulu-Natal, Zweli Mkhize, spoke in the same vein. He heartily
welcomed delegates to the province and noted that it’s a special year
because “we are celebrating the World Cup for the first time in
Africa.” He added that it’s a celebration of the 20th anniversary of
Nelson Mandela’s release from jail and a celebration of the effort of
African people “to free themselves and take their destinies into their
own hands.” Mkhize urged people to “spend some time and enjoy our home”
in closing.

South Africa’s
Minister of Tourism, Marthinus van Schalkwyk, brought glad tidings to
Durban and its residents. He announced that the city has been given the
right to host INDABA for the next five years.

Important lesson

FIFA General
Secretary, Jerome Valcke and Chairman, Local Organising Committee of
the World Cup, Danny Jordaan, treated guests to some drama at the
occasion. The two wisecracking officials poked fun at themselves while
speaking about South Africa’s preparedness for the tournament. Valcke
stated that he has learnt how to fill the stadiums from INDABA and that
some of the 10 new stadiums are “better than the ones we used in
Germany 2006.” “What of France 98?” Jordaan asked the Frenchman, but he
gave no a clear answer, noting instead that both France and South
Africa have to beat Uruguay and Mexico to qualify from the group. The
duo assured that South Africa, indeed, was ready for the world.

The task of thanking guests and inviting dignitaries on stage to
symbolically turn on the lights at the new stadiums fell on Chief
Executive Officer of South African Tourism, Thandiwe January-McLean.
Zuma, Jordaan, Valcke, SA Tourism chair, Jabu Mabuza, Schalkwyk and
January-McLean turned on the light after which a video of the stadiums
state of preparedness was screened.