Cape Town - South African Tourism has announced that the Cape Town Jazz Festival will go ahead this month despite the water crisis.
It announced that the event would be “water-neutral”, and the organisers pledged to bring clean, drinkable water from outside the city to augment the water supply.
Coming two weeks after the Cape Town Cycle Tour, the festival is expected to inject up to R685million into the local economy. Now in its 20th year, the festival will take place from March23-24. About 34000 people are expected at the event which creates nearly 3000 jobs.
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“I am proud that the City of Cape Town is going forward with the annual Cape Town Jazz Festival and Cape Town Cycle Tour this month. These events are setting a benchmark for the world on how water-neutral events can be held to mitigate the effects of drought and global warming, while going further to augment the city’s water supply instead of reducing it,’’ said the chief executive of South African Tourism, Sisa Ntshona.
The festival kicks off on Tuesday with a free concert on Greenmarket Square.
“We are thrilled that the events are going ahead despite the water shortage that is currently impacting Cape Town.
“They will give Cape Town and the South African economy a significant economic boost, which is vital for generating employment and supporting tourism businesses.
“The mere fact that the events will not be cancelled is a strong indication that the South African tourism industry is open for business and ready to welcome travellers,” Ntshona said.
Some of the artists expected to perform at the free concert are Incognito, from the UK, The Soil, local music producer Alistair Izobell, Claire Phillips, espYoungLegends winner Jarrad Ricketts, DJ Eazy and the All Star Band.
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