The African tourism economy stood a good chance of growing and achieving its full potential if African countries work together, said Tourism Minister Marthinus Van Schalkwyk on Thursday.

"As a continent, we still receive only some five percent of international visitors. I firmly believe that, if we work together, we can achieve much more.

"Although competition is good and keeps us on our toes, we must ultimately act in partnership to achieve our full potential," Van Schalkwyk told a hospitality investment conference Africa in Sandton, Johannesburg.

The conference is aimed at developing and growing travel and tourism in the African continent.

"In Africa, we are increasingly discovering the 'new gold' that drives job creation, development and economic growth. This 'new gold' is tourism.

"It is an inexhaustible resource, but also a shared one, an instrument of social cohesion, and a unifier on the African continent.

"I firmly believe that we have only scratched the surface of truly unlocking the benefits of tourism on our continent," he said.

Citing trade shows as an example, Van Schalkwyk said there was nothing preventing the continent's tourism industries from working in partnership to showcase their tourism attractions.

"There is huge potential for the joint marketing of Africa at trade shows, which is precisely what we did last month at the JATA exhibition in Japan... or to work together to improve our tourism statistics.

"We must address critical issues to facilitate travel on our continent, including air access, cross-border operational policies, and other barriers to growth," he said.

Van Schalkwyk told conference delegates to use the 2010 Fifa World Cup to showcase what African countries could do.

"Africa will be the theatre, and South Africa will be the stage for the 2010 World Cup. For Africa, a successful World Cup holds huge symbolic and branding value. The global exposure to the truly African experience will be immense.

"I am confident that the World Cup will introduce an era of new growth and new opportunities for the tourism sector in Africa," he said.

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