Environmental Affairs and Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk will meet his counterparts from nine southern African countries today to discuss the potential of the region's transfrontier parks to enhance tourism during the 2010 World Cup.
Van Schalkwyk's spokesman, Riaan Aucamp, said at the weekend the transfrontier parks - protected conservation areas that straddle international boundaries - would enable SA to host a "truly African" 2010 World Cup. 
He said the benefits would filter to SA's neighbours, and the cross-border parks to be discussed at today's meeting were !Ai/!Ais-Richtersveld, Kgalagadi, Kavango Zambezi, Limpopo-Shashe, Great Limpopo, Lubombo and Maloti-Drakensberg.
He said today's meeting was intended to develop "a regional approach" to unlocking the tourism potential of the parks. 
"We want to ensure that when people come for the world cup they don't only enjoy the soccer but see other parts of southern Africa, and the parks will make the movement between SA and neighbouring countries easy."
SA will become the first country on the African continent to host the Soccer World Cup finals, the world's biggest sporting showpiece, when it stages the games in 2010.
Government has said it wants the economic benefits of the tournament to accrue to every country in southern Africa.
Aucamp said that the meeting would consider upgrades to ensure the parks offered travellers to the world cup the chance to experience Africa "beyond the walls of soccer stadiums". 
"This approach is to enable travellers to experience a number of different African countries in a single destination," Aucamp said.
"The discussions will also address issues of tourism, infrastructure investment, quality assurance within the hospitality sector, ease of travel within the region and obstacles to convincing world cup spectators to travel more widely," he said.
The parks offer, among other attractions, hiking trails and overnight camping, specialist botanical, geological and photographic tours, cultural tours and horse trails.
Van Schalkwyk's spokesman, Riaan Aucamp, said at the weekend the transfrontier parks - protected conservation areas that straddle international boundaries - would enable SA to host a "truly African" 2010 World Cup.
He said the benefits would filter to SA's neighbours, and the cross-border parks to be discussed at today's meeting were !Ai/!Ais-Richtersveld, Kgalagadi, Kavango Zambezi, Limpopo-Shashe, Great Limpopo, Lubombo and Maloti-Drakensberg.
He said today's meeting was intended to develop "a regional approach" to unlocking the tourism potential of the parks.
"We want to ensure that when people come for the world cup they don't only enjoy the soccer but see other parts of southern Africa, and the parks will make the movement between SA and neighbouring countries easy."
SA will become the first country on the African continent to host the Soccer World Cup finals, the world's biggest sporting showpiece, when it stages the games in 2010.
Government has said it wants the economic benefits of the tournament to accrue to every country in southern Africa.
Aucamp said that the meeting would consider upgrades to ensure the parks offered travellers to the world cup the chance to experience Africa "beyond the walls of soccer stadiums".
"This approach is to enable travellers to experience a number of different African countries in a single destination," Aucamp said.
"The discussions will also address issues of tourism, infrastructure investment, quality assurance within the hospitality sector, ease of travel within the region and obstacles to convincing world cup spectators to travel more widely," he said.
The parks offer, among other attractions, hiking trails and overnight camping, specialist botanical, geological and photographic tours, cultural tours and horse trails.
