Development of a standardised methodology for event impact assessments in the Western Cape, South Africa

Abstract

The Western Cape Government (WCG) developed an Integrated Events Strategy for Cape Town and the Western Cape, supporting events to maximise brand building potential and triple bottom line benefits. WCG acknowledges that assessing the impacts of events in the province has become increasingly complex and there is a lack of a standardised methodology to measure the economic, social and environmental impacts. The WCG thus undertook research to develop a standardised set of indicators and methodological approach by which the impact of five annual, jewel (or iconic) events supported by the WCG could be measured. The first phase of the study focused on the development of the indicators and piloting a range of survey instruments for the various event stakeholders, including the stallholders/ exhibitors, service providers and the event organisers. The second phase of the study covered piloting of attendees’ and sponsor surveys as well as refining the surveys piloted during phase one. Phase two of the study also included the validation of the methodology for an event impact assessment tool to be shared with the smaller (incubator) events also supported by the WCG. The findings of the study ill assist policy and decision-makers to develop more effective measuring tools to assist in the systematic evaluation of social, economic, environmental and governance indicators for events. The study contributes to deepening the analysis of the social ecology of a collaborative approach between government departments, private sector and ancillary stakeholders in effective event evaluation. Furthermore, the study analyses the roles, responsibilities and interests of multiple stakeholders in measuring impacts of events in the Western Cape, focusing on advantages, challenges and consequences of an integrated evaluation approach.

Keywords: Event impacts, assessments, standardisation, methodologies, indicators, Western Cape, South Africa.