Gauteng MEC for Economic Development, Agriculture & Rural Development Vuyiswa Ramokgopa launched the platform at the Creative Uprising Hub at Constitution Hill, closing Tourism and Heritage Month. Its aim is to connect discovery, planning, booking, purchasing and sharing in one place, and to turn visitor movement into jobs, trade and enterprise growth.

"We are not merely launching an app," said Ramokgopa. "We are activating a new economic infrastructure for tourism, culture, creativity and commerce."

What the platform offers

• Visit Gauteng Marketplace: a shared digital storefront for SMMEs, township enterprises, artists, designers, tourism products, cultural experiences and proudly Gauteng-made goods.

• Always-on promotion: a move from periodic campaigns to continuous marketing of the province.

• Local business access: year-round access to customers for tourism operators and creative entrepreneurs.

The evening also introduced the Visit Gauteng x Diadora City Pack Merchandise Collection, a partnership with Diadora South Africa that aims to give local designers, stylists and creators a route into wider commercial markets.

GTA Acting CEO Crezelda Venter called the platform a tool for market access and economic inclusion, built "to turn attention into action, interest into income and visitation into economic participation." It also supports the province's ambition to be Africa's Bleisure Powerhouse, combining business events, culture, heritage and lifestyle.