DURBAN - The events industry has been devastated by the protracted lock-down and its economic impact. As other industries have slowly begun resuming business activities, event’s organisers, venues and suppliers to the industry still await the broader re-opening of the Events Industry sector.
In recognising the need for stringent control, Event Safety Council (ESC) a special interest council within the Southern African Communications Industries Association's (SACIA) in collaboration with the South African Event Council (SAEC) undertook the task of preparing Re-opening Guidelines for the South African Events Industry Sector.
According to Mike Lord, Interim Chairperson for the Event Safety Council, the social nature of events dictates the importance of providing and enforcing prevention and control measures against exposure to the virus.
"We gratefully acknowledge this amendment and will make ourselves available to engage with the government on a National, Provincial and Metro level in practically re-opening the sector,”
"At the same time, we ask the events industry members to continue to exercise patience while the government and the Associations represented in the SA Event Council work with government on providing practical solutions in allowing 50 attendees or less business conferences to be held immediately,” he said.
The ESC Guidelines define a 5-tier event categorisation (Very Low Risk to Very High Risk) with a specific set of safety guidelines per category. There is also provision made for specialist compliance staff appointments to manage the safety and prevention of exposure to Covid-19 at events.
Safety processes are outlined across all the areas of Communication, Sanitisation, Cleaning and Hygiene, Venue requirements, Attendee Management, Event Management, Staff Health Management and Transportation.
Kevan Jones, executive director of SACIA said: "We look forward to fruitful and positive outcomes from these engagements. As representatives of the events sector, we remain engaged in looking for solutions to rebuild the economy of this much-needed sector."
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