The Western Cape government and George Municipality are exploring the development of an international convention centre (ICC) for George – driven by lack of infrastructure on the Garden Route to support large-scale MICE events. The first step, a feasibility study, is in the works.
The Garden Route is emerging as a MICE destination with George and Knysna entering the International Congress and Convention Association rankings for 2024, having hosted one qualifying meeting each. At the time of the rankings release, Wesgro said smaller cities and towns like George, Knysna, Grabouw and Paarl “are emerging as new attractive options for smaller-scale association meetings”.
Joan Shaw, Tourism Manager for George Municipality, told Tourism Update that a joint committee from the municipality and the province will meet this month to finalise specifications for a feasibility study. “Once set, a call for proposals will be advertised and tenders invited. The study’s outcomes will guide Council’s decision on the way forward,” Shaw said.
Ilse van Schalkwyk, Chief Director for Economic Sector Support at the Western Cape’s Department of Economic Development and Tourism, said the feasibility study follows “research into business tourism opportunities in secondary cities, which highlighted Stellenbosch and George as key priorities while identifying a lack of sufficient infrastructure in the Garden Route to support large-scale MICE events”.
The Department of Economic Development and Tourism’s Annual Performance Plan for 2025 also mentions a potential George convention centre to serve the Southern Cape, stating “such an initiative would significantly expand the tourism and events offering of this region and could catalyse further expansion of George Airport to serve growing demand”.
The document also indicates that the convention centre will be private sector-led.
