Several captains of industry, including Clifford Ross, CEO of the City Lodge Hotel Group; Linda Pampallis, CEO of Thompsons Africa; Khehla Mthembu, Group Executive Director of Tourvest and Bekithemba Langalibelele from the National Department of Tourism; proudly put their signature next to their establishment's logo on 'The Code' banner to publicly demonstrate their commitment to this important initiative. 

The Code is an instrument of Corporate Social Responsibility for tourism establishments, which aims to provide increased protection to children from sexual exploitation in travel and tourism. It is based on the United Nations (UN) Declaration of Human Rights and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and requires commitment from all levels of signatories business. 

Over 1000 companies have already signed The Code across the globe and signatories in South Africa include hotel chains such as City Lodge, Accor and Radisson; major tour operators such as Tourvest and Thompsons Africa and car rental companies such as Avis, Europcar, First and Budget.

Jennifer Seif, Executive Director of FTTSA stated that "FTTSA's mission is to create a responsible tourism industry that treats all stakeholders fairly in terms of the environment, the economy and the people. Due to many unfortunate conditions in the country such as poverty, high numbers of orphans and lack of family support structures, children are especially at risk of being exploited and used for criminal purposes. By means of the Code and with the help of the government and private sector, we can develop a responsible, more aware industry that protects children rather than abuses them and take a common stance against this cruel occurrence."

The Chairperson of the Code International, Matthias Leisinger, was also present at the occasion and spoke about the important role that South Africa plays in the global expansion of the Code and the industry's substantial commitment since the Code's launch prior to the World Cup in 2010.

Says Leisinger, "South Africa, with the help of FTTSA, has doen some tremendous work in terms of raising awareness about the issue of exploitation of children in tourism. The feedback from the private industry, as well as the support from government and associations, is extensive and once again proves South Africa to be a responsible tourism destination. On behalf of the Code International, I express my thanks to the South African Code signatories and supporters and to FTTSA for helping to make this holiday destination a better, safer place for children."

FTTSA would like to encourage the industry to visit their Code stand at Indaba (ICCE020) to find out more about the initiative and signing up.

For more information please contact:
Karen van Diggelen
+27 84 370 3685
karen@deepsmart.co.za

Or visit Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa
www.thecode.org  or www.fairtourismsa.org.za

For a list of supporters and signatories click here