Ian Wheeler, chairman of the Advisory Board of the Global Travel and Tourism Partnership (GTTP), announced the establishment of GTTP South Africa as a stand-alone program of the GTTP, an international consortium of education programs headquartered in Philadelphia. The program was previously an activity of South Africa's National Business Initiative (NBI), a voluntary group of companies working towards a sustainable society.

GTTP South Africa will be headed by Lisa Gordon-Davis, owner and managing director of Kundiza Training and Consulting, an organization that specializes in training and consulting to the tourism and hospitality industries. She was previously a senior manager for one of GTTP South Africa's predecessor sponsors. Kundiza Training operates out of White River in Mpumalanga.

"GTTP South Africa helps create wonderful opportunities for our young people to learn about an important industry and to compete to represent our country and its cultures internationally," said Gordon-Davis, "and I am delighted to be involved again in its work."

"When the program started, our primary goal was to work with the NBI and other South African stakeholders to ensure that Travel & Tourism education became part of the national curriculum in South Africa's secondary schools," said Wheeler.

"Thanks to the NBI and its leadership working with other institutions almost 300,000 learners in 2,600 schools at the beginning of 2009 had access to an important sector of South Africa's career education curriculum," said Wheeler. “Lisa will be building on the strong foundation established by the NBI."

Andre Fourie, Chief Executive of the NBI, said “We are very proud that the NBI has been able to accomplish what we set out to do.  Tourism education is an integral part of the South African national curriculum, and learners now have an opportunity to become educated about career opportunities in an industry that is vital to our economy.”

Establishing GTTP South Africa as standalone program headed by a consultant allows it to be managed with a leaner structure, hiring specialists for specific projects, said Gordon-Davis.

"Our emphasis will be on teacher training at the secondary school level" said Gordon-Davis. "We also have well-established research and travel writing competitions that send winning learners to student conference in Europe, and we will work to broaden participation," she said.

Earlier in her career Gordon-Davis was a manager for the Tourism and Hospitality Education and Training Authority (THETA) and was assigned to manage the South African Tourism Institute (SATI), a project established and funded by the Government of Spain. In that capacity Gordon-Davis worked with the NBI and the GTTP.

Wheeler is vice president, Marketing, for Madrid-based Amadeus, and is responsible for leading the company's worldwide marketing activities, positioning it as the leading distributor of travel and provider of IT solutions to the travel and tourism industry. A seasoned executive with nearly 20 years of commercial experience, Wheeler drives the company's marketing initiatives which include marketing strategy, product management, global customer services and e-Commerce. For more information see www.amadeus.com

The GTTP is a multi-country educational program that introduces students to career opportunities in Travel & Tourism. Currently it serves more than 557,000 students in ten countries. School systems provide teachers and classrooms; local and international companies provide financial and in-kind support. Some 3,200 local businesses share their expertise with teachers and students. Leading international companies that support the GTTP's global activities include: Amadeus, American Express, Hertz, HRG, Lufthansa, Starwood and the World Travel & Tourism Council, and their representatives form our Advisory Board.