Football summit boosts KZN tourism, economy

Premier of KwaZulu-Natal, Nomusa Dube-Ncube, has stated that the provincial government will use the World Football Summit to broaden its perspective beyond the unrivaled passion of football and consider it as a stimulus for tourism and socioeconomic development.
Dube-Ncube spoke at the World Football Summit Africa 2022’s opening ceremony, which is now taking place at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre in Durban.
“We are ecstatic about the global marketing exposure that this conference affords us, which will definitely ignite and fuel the province’s expanding tourism interest. Dube-Ncube stated, “We have in our midst representatives from the greatest football leagues who will collaborate with our province in a variety of sectors to help us grow this new economic terrain.”
The two-day summit, which is being hosted for the first time on African land, is a gathering of football business members to discuss ways to advance the sport. It aims to equip the local football industry with the knowledge necessary to advance the sport in all of its features and areas.
Wednesday, while addressing the delegates, Dube-Ncube stated that the province wishes to capitalize on the prospects presented by the new economic frontiers of sports and digital economy for the benefit of a large number of young people.
Dube-Ncube stated that the provincial administration is examining emerging industries of the future to guarantee that inhabitants of the province seize possibilities and do not merely become consumers of services.
She emphasized that the province reaped substantial benefits from hosting the 2010 World Cup, which generated more than R93 billion for the nation and R3 billion for Durban and KwaZulu-Natal.
Dube-Ncube stated, “We are grateful to the South African Football Association (SAFA), Confederation of African Football (CAF), and International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) for exposing our province and people to this strategic sector of the economy.”
Utilizing football to safeguard women’s rights
The Premier challenged the delegates to use their passion for football to promote and safeguard the hard-won rights of women, children, and all individuals, regardless of sexual orientation or religion.
She stated that football has become non-sexist due to the tremendous rise of women’s soccer over the previous decade.
However, according to Dube-Ncube, the world still faces unfair competition and discrimination, in which women can never reach the level of men because they are “asked to enter a 1km race when the men are already 200m ahead.”
“Affirmative action and corrective legislation in South Africa are intended to level the playing field and close the gap between races and sexes by providing additional opportunities to those who were previously discriminated against.”
In order for this to occur, we call on all sponsors and the media to increase their support for women’s football in Africa and around the world. Together with the associations and the government, they can provide the necessary support for women to advance and realize their full potential in football.
“We make this decision not because it is the right thing to do, but because it makes good business sense to expand the women’s market,” Dube-Ncube explained.
Alliances for the future
In addition, the premier stated that the provincial government will continue to collaborate closely with football legends in the province to promote football among boys and girls.
“We intend to invite a large number of them to collaborate with our government to address some of the socioeconomic challenges we face, such as substance abuse, criminality, and sedentary lifestyles, which are the root causes of preventable illnesses and the deterioration of lives among the people of KwaZulu-Natal.
Premier: “We will engage with the right structures on a focused programme that will facilitate and expedite the development of outstanding footballers so that we can remove hurdles and allow more foreign teams to scout them.”