NEWS
RELEASE
2 January 2004
CAPE
TOWN FESTIVAL APPOINTS NEW CEO
page one
The
Cape Town Festival has recently appointed Yusuf Ganief as its new CEO.
Ganief
was general manager for the Association of Marketers and the Marketing
Federation for 2 and a half years and brings with him a wealth of experience in
marketing, events management and financial expertise.
During his tenure with the Association of Marketers and Statistics
Holdings (Pty) Ltd his core deliverables were finance and HR Management, events
management, sponsorship packaging and sales and corporate membership sales.
Serving on and driving the committees of the Loeries, Raptors, Assegais, and
Tusk awards has given him valuable insight into the intricacies of arranging
industry events and finding the unique selling points with which to raise
sponsorship. An entrepreneur at heart he has used this skill to further his
career and believes that taking on the Cape Town Festival (CTF) is a challenge
and a huge opportunity.
“The
Cape Town Festival is one of the most exciting arts events that Cape Town has
with all the right ingredients to take it forward as a world class event. It’s
structure and philosophies have a solid community base and the spirit of the
event has yet to be explored. I am excited about taking this event forward and
with a strong organizing team and specific components feel confident that 2004
will be a turning point for the future of the Festival,” said Ganief.
The
2004 Festival will have as its theme ten years of democracy and with the popular
Night Vision and African Summer stage as well as major contemporary dance
performances the Festival is already well into planning stages. Add to that
Partnered
with the City of Cape Town the Festival endorses the City’s philosophies of
bringing the communities back into the City. Targeted at the family market
whilst not neglecting the more serious arts enthusiast the Festival can now take
its place on the world stage with its dynamic new leadership.
Ryland
Fisher, chairman of the Board of the Section 21 One City Events Company, which
manages the CTF, expressed delight at the appointment. “What started out as a
small event in 1999, following the successful Cape Times Once City Many Cultures
project, now has the opportunity to grow into a leading arts festival. It has
however lacked consistent leadership and management and in Yusuf we believe we
have found the right person to develop the event to its true potential. With his
entrepreneurial spirit, innovative ideas and marketing expertise the Festival
can become the voice for the South African arts community. His understanding of
the market and the objectives of the Festival are completely in line and we are
delighted that he has decided to resettle in Cape Town and take this project
forward.”
Leaving
the vibrant business community of Johannesburg to enjoy the beauty of Cape Town,
Ganief is not easing his pace. Originally hailing from Lansdowne, Cape Town,
where he spent most of his youth, Yusuf is determined that the skills he has
learnt in the past will set the stage for a new, yet disciplined event, his
vision is to meet the needs of the broad based community and showcase the City
in the most innovative way.
ENDS
______________________________________________________________
For
more information, please contact Lisa Hayward at Rosemary Hare, Mitchell, Wicomb
Public Relations cc on (021) 465 1166 or 072 626 9339
Issued
by
Rosemary Hare, Mitchell, Wicomb Public Relations cc
P O Box 12521
MILL STREET
8010
On
behalf of
The Cape Town Festival
PO Box 12610
N1
CITY
7463