More than 600 of the world's top business tourism players are spending this week in Cape Town, a visit the government and local tourism bosses hope will bring more foreign exchange into South Africa.

The international industry leaders are in the city to attend three industry conferences which are happening simultaneously at the Cape Town International Convention Centre.

All three are firsts for the African continent and will collectively inject R24-million (app. 3.9m US$) into the Western Cape economy.

They are the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA), the International Association of Convention and Visitor Bureau (IACVB), and the Best Cities.net Workshop.

Noki Dube, chief executive of Cape Town Routes Unlimited (formerly the Destination Marketing Organisation) said: "Having ICCA, the IACVB and BestCities.net in Cape Town this week is a visible confirmation that Cape Town is one of the world's most sought-after meeting destinations.

"The delegates that are visiting our city and country are influential international industry players who will continue to market our assets long after they have left our shores."

The members include travel agencies, airlines, professional congress organisers, convention bureaus, convention hotels, convention centres and providers of ancillary services to the meeting industry.

Incoming SA Tourism chief executive Moeketsi Mosola addressed more than 600 international delegates from 80 countries at the ICCA congress, which seeks to create strategic global alliances to further position Cape Town as a premier meetings destination.

He told the Cape Times he wanted to push for a better alignment of the South African tourism industry, labour and communities.

"If we are fragmented, we lose global competitiveness. The delegates are blown away by South Africa and what Cape Town has to offer.

"Ninety percent of them have never been to the African continent.

"We are encouraging them to bring their business to South Africa so that we can have job creation, poverty alleviation and improve our economy."

Also speaking at the convention, Mosola's predecessor, outgoing SA Tourism chief executive Cheryl Carolus, appealed to the delegates not to pity Africa and South Africa or view them as "charity cases".

Environmental Affairs and Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk said: "The fact that the ICCA has chosen Cape Town and South Africa, for the first time in the 20 years of our membership, as the venue for this annual congress, is a clear indication that our country has become a meeting place of note, and a business tourism destination of distinction."

South Africa had moved from the 63rd to 27th most popular conference destination in the world in the past 10 years.

"We aim to break into the top 10 global conference destinations by 2010," Van Schalkwyk said.

ICCA president Christian Muschlechner said: "I am sure that our delegates will become ambassadors for a positive future for Africa, and that local members of the meetings industry will gain knowledge, contacts and the confidence to go out and win more international business."