EduSA news

Turkish Fam Trip

Education South Africa hosts Familiarization Trip for Turkish agents

In August 2009, member schools of Education South Africa (EduSA) collaborated for the first time in hosting a Turkish Agent FAM Trip.

These schools were: Good Hope Studies; Interlink; Inlingua; EC and Eurocentres.

Eight agents from Turkey visited Cape Town, South Africa, for one week and were taken to the centres who had invited agents in order to visit their premises and meet with the staff there.

There was also time to visit and explore some of the sights in Cape Town, such as taking a guided tour around the city, going up the world-famous Table Mountain by aerial cable car, and visiting the Cape of Good Hope, the most south-western tip of Africa where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet. Each day was rounded off by a visit to one of Cape Town’s many world-class restaurants, where the cuisine of the Cape and the rest of Africa could be indulged in at leisure.

It was a fantastic opportunity for EduSA to showcase the City of Cape Town and for the schools to present themselves to the agents who were visiting.

The most common comment from the agents was that Cape Town was nothing at all like they expected: The city went beyond their wildest dreams and was one the best places in the world they had ever visited!

EduSA launch

EduSA is officially launched in Cape Town

Education South Africa (EduSA), formally known as ELTASA, celebrated its official launch, which was held in Cape Town on 20 October 2009.

There were over 50 people in attendance, representing many different sectors of the industry and beyond: local govenment, tertiary institutions, regional tourism bodies, the City of Cape Town and other language centres who are not current members of EduSA.

Calvin Gilfillan, CEO of Cape Town Routes Unlimited (CTRU), gave the keynote address in which he reaffirmed his government department's support for the EFL industry in Cape Town. He vividly expressed his excitement about the new initiatives being taken by EduSA within the industry, highlighting its important role in Cape Town tourism. Other speakers were Gavin Eyre, National Chairperson of South African Youth Travel Confederation (SAYTC), and Craig Leith, Chairperson of EduSA.

The community of Cape Town EFL centres and other language centres from as far afield as Jeffrey's Bay and Port Elizabeth, were in attendance to show their support for the organisation, which assists in providing a standardised framework for the accreditation of their centres.

The main aim of this national association of quality English language centres in South Africa is to develop and guide the growth of the English language travel industry and ensure that its members meet or exceed guaranteed minimum standards of professionalism and quality.

Looking ahead EduSA also hopes to become the catalyst in the establishment of language travel tourism and the building of strong relationships within the language industry, tourism bodies and the local, provincial and national government.

edusagroup

Pictured above from left are:

Johannes Kraus, Gavin Eyre, Sue Camillieri, Howard Johnson, Belinda Whittaker, Luanne Mc Callum, Meryl van der Merwe, Angela Pereira, Emre Bilge and Craig Leith

Informal group edusa launch

Pictured above from left are:

Craig Leith (EduSA), Gavin Eyre (SAYTC), Calvin Gilfillan (CTRU)

ELTASA to become EduSA

2009 sees a year of transition for the English Language Travel Association of South Africa (ELTASA).

For the last 12 months, the youth travel industry in South Africa has been in the process of establishing a new association which will represent every area of youth travel in the destination – accommodation, volunteers and internships, transport and tours, and education. The new body is aligned with and based on the current WYSTC model. It is known as SAYTC – South African Youth and Travel Confederation.